The Long Way Home
by NatesDate
Summary: Ruth is in exile, living in Cyprus, when she crosses paths with someone from her past who needs her help. Set October 2007, several weeks after 6.2, though in this version Ros was not taken and Yalta does not exist. Updates will occur every 5-7 days as time permits.
1. Chapter 1

**The Long Way Home**

 _NatesDate_

 **Summary:** Ruth is in exile, living in Cyprus, when she crosses paths with someone from her past who needs her help. Set October 2007, several weeks after 6.2, though in this version Ros was not taken and Yalta does not exist. Rated T.

 **A/N:** Its been a few years since I've posted anything but I hated the idea of this story not being finished. My thanks to Wolfdrum and r4ven3 for their sharp eyes and feedback and to my fellow Spooks writers rahleeya, Sparky75, and SigmaCreations for their encouragement to finally get this story finished.

 **Chapter One**

 _Monday, 1 October_

'What should we do today? The weather is perfect and Nico won't be home from school until late this afternoon.'

Ruth turned to look at George as she sat at the table sipping her tea. George had fixed himself a cup of strong Cypriot-style coffee for which Ruth hadn't yet developed a taste. He'd started keeping her favorite tea at his home as a way to make her feel welcome. He'd also dropped a few hints over the past weeks about Ruth moving into his home when the lease on her flat was up in a few months, but she had pointedly ignored the hints for now. She was comfortable with their relationship as it was and she wasn't yet ready to give up her own place.

'I thought I'd visit the market and pick up something for dinner, maybe fish and a salad, that we can enjoy by the pool. Care to join me?'

George shook his head. 'Not today. I'll do a few things around the house this morning, but perhaps we can explore that private beach I was telling you about this afternoon.' He smiled that smile at her and she knew exactly what he had in mind.

Not wanting to say no just yet, Ruth smiled in return. 'That might be nice. Why don't we see what we're in the mood for later,' she said before finishing her tea. She stood up from the table and placed her cup in the sink. Before she left the kitchen, she moved to stand next to George as he sat at the table, bending down to place a kiss on his cheek. He smiled at her action and watched her leave the room.

Once in the privacy of the bathroom, Ruth opened her dressing gown and dressed in the clothes she'd brought from home. One of the hints George dropped was about leaving more of her clothing at his house, but other than a spare swimming costume and t-shirt, she kept nothing there and instead chose to pack a bag each time. More than once she'd considered the reasons she was holding herself back from fully committing to a relationship with George. Despite the fact that he was a good man who treated her well, she told herself that she still looked over her shoulder regularly and was concerned that someone would disrupt this new life she had. While this was partly true, she knew that the real reason she couldn't commit was that she was afraid that once she did, Harry would track her down and tell her she could come back to London, and back to him. She'd dreamt of it more than once but as time went on, she knew that it was less and less likely to come true. Now dressed, she brushed her hair out before pulling it back in a holder to keep it off her neck. She decided not to worry about her situation and to just enjoy the life she was living, at least for today.

* * *

Zaf tried to steel himself against the bumpiness of the dirt road, but it was a futile effort. Though it would be easier to allow himself to slip into unconsciousness, he needed to know where he was being taken and what was going to happen next.

The four men transporting him were seated in the cab of the truck while he had been tossed into the bed of the truck. There was a cover on the bed but the rear window was broken which allowed dust to drift in every time the vehicle slowed down. The dust caused him to cough uncontrollably which was painful in his condition.

It had been several weeks since he was infected with the virus and shot in the stomach. It was a testament to how valuable they thought him to be that he was treated for his injuries. They'd whisked him out of the country quickly with only a medic tasked with keeping him alive. Thankfully he lost consciousness within a few hours and the next thing he knew he was in an old farmhouse in rural Albania. What little information he got out of his captors was that he'd been operated on in rural France by a doctor who was part of their network before being moved in the back of a van to his current location. This group also had access to the antidote for the virus, though he wondered if the antidote was old or if the virus had mutated because he hadn't fully recovered. He was still weak, had difficulty breathing, and was in constant pain, though whether that was from the after effects of the virus and gun shot or the torture they had put him through he didn't know.

What really concerned him was whether he'd given up any information. He'd been delirious from the effects of his injuries. It had been several weeks since he was taken and yet he only had solid memory of the past few days. He had no way of knowing if he'd compromised any of his fellow agents, either from Five or Six. He tried asking one of the more sympathetic group members, but they'd not given him any answers.

The truck slowed down and Zaf could see through the side windows that they were in a town or some type of settlement. The truck came to a stop and the men in the cab exited the vehicle. Zaf closed his eyes to feign sleep and listened to the men speak, hoping to gain a clue as to his location. He and the men had been traveling for several days by truck, boat, and truck again so he had no idea where he was other than the climate was warmer and drier.

He heard the men talk about finding something to eat and then debating what to do with him. One of the voices noted that Zaf wasn't even conscious. He heard some rustling as the man opened the back of the truck and laid a blanket over Zaf to cover him. The back of the truck closed again and the men's voices slowly faded.

Zaf lay still, continuing to feign sleep, until several minutes had passed. Slowly he moved the blanket off his upper body and weakly lifted himself to look cautiously out the window. The truck was parked on a narrow street with buildings on both sides. An occasional car passed by but otherwise everything was quiet. Zaf continued to observe the area for a few minutes before he decided that trying to escape and probably dying in that attempt was preferable to the fate that likely awaited him.

He reached through the broken window to open the back of the truck. He moved a few of the items that were lying in the back of the truck to make it seem that he was still lying under the blanket before slipping out of the back. It took a minute for him to adjust to being upright and Zaf knew that he wouldn't be able to go far without finding help. He slowly moved down the street in the opposite direction of his captors. He stayed close to the buildings which allowed him to rest as he needed. A few people passed him, most giving him a look of concern but none stopped to ask if he needed assistance.

As he moved, the noise level started to increase until he came to the next intersection. Across the street was a public square hosting an open market bustling with people. Zaf stood at the corner and watched the crowd, trying to determine whether his captors were among them. He didn't see them but decided to take the risk and hope that he could find someone to help him before his captors found him.

* * *

Ruth parked her car just outside her flat before running into the unit to drop off her overnight bag. The slip of paper that served as her security system was still in place yet she entered the unit cautiously, relaxing after a quick check revealed that nothing was out of place. She left the bag in her bedroom and grabbed an empty canvas shopping bag before leaving her flat and replacing the paper slip.

As George had noted, it was a beautiful day, though she had to admit the weather in Polis was rarely bad. With her sunglasses on she strolled towards the market, enjoying the sun on her face. As much as she missed London, weather like this made it a little easier to be away from home. Continuing towards the market she made a mental list of what she would like to purchase. George's favorite was sea bass, so she hoped it would be available. That along with some fresh vegetables for a salad would make for a refreshing dinner after a hot day.

Turning the corner, the public square was ahead of her with people already milling about. She spotted her favorite seafood vender and walked to his stall first. Kostas greeted her warmly and wrapped an order of sea bass for her. Handing over the euros, she asked him to keep the fish on ice while she did her other shopping. She thanked him and smiled warmly before moving on.

Not being in a rush she stopped at a few vendors selling jewelry and other crafts. She fingered a necklace that reminded her of the one she was wearing when she left London the year before but had been lost during her travels. She let memories of bus rides and dinners, rooftops and docks float through her mind before walking away. Pining for something lost wouldn't do her any good, she reminded herself, before moving towards a vegetable stall on the edge of the square.

* * *

Zaf slowly made his way across the street to the square. The number of people who passed him grew but still no one offered their help. He couldn't really blame them as he knew he looked terrible. It had been several weeks since he'd bathed, his hair was long and matted in places, and his clothes were dirty and tattered. His appearance was the least of his concerns at the moment, however. He needed medical attention and he hoped he could find someone who would help him before his captors discovered his escape. He was feeling very lightheaded and his vision was blurring, and Zaf worried that he would pass out before he found someone who would help him.

'Just 10 more steps,' he told himself. That would get him to the first stall, where hopefully someone would be willing to help. He tried to scan the crowd for any sign of his captors, but the moments of clear vision were becoming less frequent. He took the last step to the stall and placed his hand at the edge of the table to steady him. He turned his head and took in the piles of vegetables on the table before looking up at the woman behind the table. She opened her mouth to speak, no doubt to tell him to move away, but before she could say anything he whispered, 'Help me,' and promptly passed out.

Several people nearby yelled in surprise while the woman behind the table rushed around to help. Another man crouched down and they rolled Zaf onto his back before the man yelled into the crowd for a doctor and for someone to call for help.

Ruth was looking at tomatoes when she heard a commotion several stalls over. When a man called for a doctor, Ruth rushed over to help. She wasn't a medical professional but she did know how to keep calm during an emergency and could maybe help. Another woman also responded and was checking the man's vital signs when Ruth crouched across from her.

The woman asked her to make sure that an ambulance had been called. Ruth did so and responded that they would be there in three minutes. The man who'd collapsed started moaning and showing signs of consciousness, so Ruth finally looked at him properly. It took her a moment for her brain to look past the matted hair, the dirty clothes, and the facial hair, but as soon as the man opened his eyes, Ruth knew exactly who he was.

'Hello, pretty woman,' he said and smiled before losing consciousness again.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Thank you for your kind reviews. They make this maddening process all worth it and remind me that I still have to finish the story!

 **Chapter** **Two**

 _Same day_

Ruth was trying to distract herself with a magazine from the waiting room when she heard her name called. Looking up she saw George walking towards her quickly.

'I'm so glad you are here. I need your help, please.'

'What is the matter? Are you hurt?' he said as he looked her over for any evidence of injury.

She shook her head. 'I'm fine, but a friend of mine is hurt. I don't know what's wrong with him but he's quite badly off.'

'Who is this? What happened to him?'

'His name is Jamal but I don't know what happened to him. I haven't seen him since I left Britain. I went to the market and someone called for help. I ran over and there was a man passed out on the ground and it was him! I don't know why he's here, but he looked terrible and so sick. Please, George, please help him.'

George had never heard the normally calm Ruth so panicked, and he wondered what her relationship was with this man.

'Okay, I'll go and see what I can do to help and I'll let you know more but it may be a while. Why don't you go home…'

'No. I'm not leaving until I know what's wrong with him. I'll wait here; I'll be fine. Thank you,' she said before reaching up and kissing him on the cheek. She'd seen the unasked question in his eyes about her relationship with Zaf but she wanted him to focus on Zaf now.

'Okay, I'll let you know something as soon as possible.'

Ruth nodded before returning to the waiting room chair in which she'd been previously sitting.

An hour passed before Ruth saw him again. A nurse had collected Ruth and taken her to George's office where he joined her moments later.

'How's Jamal? Is he going to be okay?' she asked as soon as George entered the room.

He took the seat next to her and reached for her hand. 'Your friend is quite ill. We're still running tests but it appears that he had abdominal surgery recently and the incision is infected. He's also got some sort of respiratory infection so we've started him on a strong antibiotic to try and knock those out. He's very weak and dehydrated, so he's been started on fluids. He was drifting in and out of consciousness as we examined him and he said your name a few times.' George watched Ruth for her reaction.

She nodded. 'He was awake briefly after I went over to help. I didn't even recognize him until he opened his eyes. He recognized me though; he said, 'Hello, pretty woman' before he passed out again. It was a joke between us, one he made right before I left.' Ruth wiped a tear from her cheek. 'Will he be okay?'

'He's sick but with medical treatment he should be fine.' George's update was interrupted by a ringing phone. 'Hold on a moment,' he said as he answered.

Ruth listened to George's side of the conversation but didn't learn anything new. Thankfully the call was short.

'That was the lab. I've ordered a blood transfusion to boost his blood counts and somehow we don't have any of his blood type available so I have to order some from Limassol or Paphos.' George stood from the chair.

'What's his blood type?' Ruth had a vague memory that she and Zaf were the same blood type but trying to explain to George why she would know that would be too difficult.

'He's B Negative, why?

Ruth stood as well. 'I'm B Negative, too. Can I donate to him?'

George simply nodded. 'Well that's lucky. Come with me to the lab. We need to verify your type and run our standard tests before you can donate. It's quick and he'll still get the blood sooner than if we were to order it from another hospital.'

The day passed slowly for Ruth. The vial of blood they'd taken was tested and found to be compatible to Zaf's so shortly thereafter she found herself with a needle in her arm watching the deep red liquid flow through a tube into a bag hanging nearby. Once this was finished she was finally allowed to sit at Zaf's bedside as her blood became his.

Taking in his appearance, he really did look terrible. From the matted hair to unkempt facial hair, she hardly recognized her friend. Her mind raced as she wondered how he ended up in Cyprus with his injuries. She thought about how to contact the Grid but was hesitant; she had hoped that Zaf would come around long enough for her to ask him a few questions, but so far he'd not woken. She wet a flannel and washed off his face and neck, then rinsed the cloth before wiping down his arms and hands. She found a comb in the bedside drawer and did her best to work through his hair, recognizing that a scissors would be more productive at this point.

Satisfied that she'd done what she could, she sat back down next to Zaf's bed and took his hand in hers. If he woke up she wanted him to know that someone who cared about him was there.

* * *

'Hey, wake up. You drifted off,' George's voice brought Ruth back to consciousness.

'Oh, I didn't mean to do that,' she said through a yawn.

'It's all right. Your friend is holding steady; his vital signs are slowly improving,' George commented as he looked at the various machines around the room.

'That's wonderful. When do you think he'll wake up?'

'Hard to say. His body is hard at work fighting the infection and he was suffering from dehydration, so he needs time to heal. We don't know anything about what he was doing or why he suddenly turned up here, but it's a good thing he turned up when he did.'

'I have no idea either why he would be here, looking like this. Jamal was always very clean cut when I worked with him; I've never seen him so scruffy.'

'Well, it's likely to be some time before he wakes up so why don't we go and get something to eat? Aside from your friend here it's a busy day at the hospital and I have a few other patients to get back to.'

'I'm so sorry to have interrupted your day off,' Ruth said as they left Zaf's room.

George reached down and grasped Ruth's hand in his own. 'It's all right. As I said, it's a busy day and I would have been called in anyway.'

As they looked over the lunch offerings, George asked Ruth if she wanted the fish.

'Oh my gosh, I completely forgot that I bought sea bass this morning and left it with Kostas.'

'You bought sea bass?'

'I was going to make it for dinner this evening with a nice salad. I thought it would be good after a warm day.'

'It would have been delicious, but I don't think I'll be able to convince you to come home with me tonight, will I?'

Ruth shook her head. 'No, I want to stay here in case he wakes up. I can't imagine why he's here but I think seeing a friendly face would be good for him.'

After they sat down to eat, George voiced a question that had been on his mind all day. 'Ruth, do you have any idea why your friend is here in Polis, and why he's in such a terrible condition? Something just doesn't seem right.'

Ruth knew she had to tread carefully, especially until she had the chance to speak with Zaf. Best to stay as close to the truth as possible, she thought to herself.

'Honestly, I have no idea why he's here or why he looks like he does. Jamal mentioned once he has family in Pakistan but I don't think I ever heard him mention Cyprus. I haven't had contact with him or anyone else in Britain since I left. As outrageous as it sounds, I think it's all a coincidence that he's here.'

'Did he know your ex? Do you think he's tracked you down somehow?'

Ruth took a deep breath. Her story for why she suddenly turned up in Cyprus to start a new life was that her ex-partner had been manipulative and controlling. Most people didn't ask too many questions and it explained her not wanting to share details about her life in London.

'No, Jamal was one of the people I turned to when I needed to get out of that situation and he went out on a limb to help me leave the country. As I've said, I haven't had any contact with him since then.'

Conversation then shifted to Nico and what he was doing in school before George announced he needed to get back to check on a few patients. He told Ruth he would stop by to see her and Jamal again once he'd finished with the others then kissed her before walking away.

In the short time since Zaf reappeared in her life, Ruth felt the emotions she'd worked hard to put behind her come rushing back. The wonder if she would see Harry again, her anxiety about being discovered alive, and the questions about what Zaf was involved in were almost overwhelming. One thing at a time, she told herself. She needed to be there when Zaf awoke so she could ask him what was going on.

Heading back towards Zaf's room, she walked past the front reception desk.

'Ruth, can you help me for a moment, please?' asked Anastasia, who was working at the desk.

'What do you need?'

'I need to go to the lavatory and then grab a sandwich from the café but there's no one available to help. Just five minutes, I promise.'

Ruth took pity on the young woman and nodded her assent. Anastasia jumped up from her chair and walked around to the door that provided access to the area behind the reception desk. Ruth entered and as Anastasia walked out she promised once again to be back quickly.

Ruth settled herself in the office chair and waited. Her first job at the hospital was in this exact position, which she did for a little over a month, until it was discovered that she had a talent for languages and numbers and she was moved to the accounting department.

She'd only been sitting at the desk for a minute when two disheveled men walked in the door and approached the desk and asked for help.

'What do you need help with?' she asked.

'We are looking for a friend of ours. We were near the market this morning and were separated. He was not feeling well and now we can't find him. Can you check if he is here?' the taller of the two men asked as the other surveyed the waiting room nearby.

Something in their manner put Ruth on edge but she smiled at the men anyway. 'What is your friend's name?'

'Zafar Younis, but he has been sick for some time and may not remember his name. He has dark hair and brown eyes. We've been travelling for many days so his clothing is dirty.'

Harry had once called her a 'born spook' and she needed every ounce of that ability to get her through the next few minutes. Zaf's life likely depended upon her not giving away that she knew of his whereabouts.

'Just a moment, I'll check the records to see if anyone with that name or description has been admitted,' she said, grateful for the opportunity to move her eyes away from the man in front of her. Zaf had been admitted under the name Jamal Davi, which was the name she had given to the hospital when they arrived. She didn't know why Zaf was in Cyprus, but based on his physical condition she knew it wasn't for holiday and she made the split second decision to use Zaf's legend from Operation Waterfall rather than his real name.

She entered the name into the search field and pressed enter, knowing it wouldn't find the name. 'I'm sorry, no one by that name has been admitted to the hospital in the last 24 hours and there doesn't appear to be any unidentified males admitted either,' she added.

Anger flared in the man's eyes. 'Are you sure? He must be here!'

Ruth played along and acted intimidated. 'I'm sure, Sir, but I will call casualty and check for you. Just a moment.' She dialed her own office extension and asked a few questions of her voice mail before replacing the receiver.

'Sorry, no one by that name or description has been seen. Have you checked with the police?' she asked, encouraging the men to leave before Anastasia returned.

The man looked at Ruth, presumably hoping to see evidence of deception in her face. After a few moments he turned and looked at his companion, nodding towards the door before they left the building.

Ruth let out her breath. Turning to the computer she pulled up Zaf's record and made a few changes, including changing his admission date to two days earlier, hoping it would throw off other searches for information. As she finished, Anastasia returned and thanked Ruth for her help.

As Ruth made her way up to Zaf's room, she started formulating a plan to get him out of the hospital as soon as possible, knowing that it wouldn't be long before the men would be back and asking more questions.

 **A/N:** _According to The Personnel Files, Zaf_ _and Ruth do have the same blood type._


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** Thank you for your kind reviews and to r4ven3 for her eagle-eyed review of this chapter.

 **Chapter Three**

 _Wednesday, 3 October_

Ruth sat in her small kitchen with a cup of tea. She was thinking back to the morning two days ago when she dropped off her small bag and prepared to run out to the market, never imagining what would happen in the hours since.

Zaf was currently sleeping in her bed after Ruth and George smuggled him out of the hospital just after midnight. She knew the men who'd come to the hospital looking for Zaf would likely come back. Luckily once she'd returned to his room he woke up and was able to give her the basic story; he'd been abducted and tortured and his captors were moving him somewhere when he escaped.

Ruth's mind went into overdrive as she plotted out their next moves. Zaf was doing better thanks to the medicine and fluids but he was still weak and needed time to recover. He'd asked why she was there but all she told him was that his name was now Jamal Davi and that he and Ruth had been co-workers and friends in London before she left to escape an abusive partner. Zaf managed to raise his eyebrows at that but she just shook her head and mouthed 'Later' as George entered the room.

Ruth explained to George that Jamal had been abducted and tortured and the men responsible were looking for him and that she didn't feel he was safe at the hospital. She floated the idea of moving him to George's home, but he refused, saying he couldn't compromise Nico's safety. Ruth nodded in understanding and then announced she would be taking him back to her flat until he was well enough to travel.

George, confused by the situation and wondering why someone Ruth knew from London would be kidnapped and tortured, pleaded with her to tell him what was going on and who this man really was.

Ruth refused, knowing that she was testing the boundaries of their relationship. It wasn't something she had to consciously think about; she knew she would protect Zaf and see him to safety even if it meant the end of her relationship with George.

When Zaf was settled in her bed, George hooked up the IV of fluids and antibiotics. Zaf was responding well to the treatment but he needed more than 36 hours of medication to cure what was ailing him. Ruth watched as George double checked the tubes and bags of medicine. When he was finished he turned to Ruth who surprised him by wrapping her arms around him.

'Thank you. For everything. I know you have questions and I wish I could answer them. I truly don't know why someone would abduct Jamal and torture him. I hope that when he's conscious again I can ask him these questions.' She pulled back to look at him, hoping he wouldn't see the deception in her eyes.

George leaned forward and kissed her forehead. 'Okay, Ruth. I trust you even though every instinct I have says that this isn't right. He needs antibiotics and IV fluids for at least another 24 hours, so I'll be back to check on him before I go to work. Do you remember how to change the bags?'

Ruth nodded. 'I do, and I wrote myself notes as well. We'll be okay.'

They separated and moved to the kitchen where George picked up his jacket and medical bag. As he reached for the door, he turned back to Ruth. 'If he develops a fever, call me if it reaches 38 degrees. Otherwise I'll see you in the morning.' He smiled briefly before walking through the door and quietly pushing it shut behind him. Ruth locked the door before returning to her bedroom. She checked on Zaf one last time before curling up on the sofa and pulling a blanket over her.

* * *

 _Thursday, 4 October_

'Finally, where are we on tracking Zaf and the Redbacks?'

Ros spoke up first. 'We've tracked them to Albania and suspect they may be held up in a farm house 20 miles outside Elbasan. A contact of mine from Six is willing to check out the area.'

'When could we expect a report?' Adam asked.

'Twelve hours at least. My contact is in Athens and he would be driving there,' she replied.

'Doesn't Six have anyone closer than Athens that we could lean on?' It was Harry who spoke this time.

'They do but we don't know to what extent the Redbacks have infiltrated the intelligence community. My contact is aware of this group; apparently a Greek officer was taken a few months ago and the results were not good. I trust him and he feels that Greek Intelligence would be willing to assist if necessary.'

Harry didn't immediately respond and Adam took the opportunity to share his thoughts. 'I don't have any contacts in the area, Harry. Unless Ros or I go to Albania ourselves, I think this is our best option.'

Harry looked at both Ros and Adam, and then nodded his assent. 'All right. I want to be notified when the report comes in.' Harry stood, signaling that the briefing was finished. 'Adam, Ros, a moment please,' he said as Malcolm and Jo filed out of the room.

'Realistically, what are the chances we find Zaf and the Redbacks?'

Adam and Ros shared a look before Adam spoke up. 'We all can imagine what this group has probably done to Zaf, but we've continued tracking the group and Zaf because the few reports we've had have shown that he's still alive and we need to protect our own. We understand the risks but we should also expect that our country will do what it can to protect us.'

Ros nodded in concurrence. 'Plainly speaking, Zaf is a valuable asset to the security services in this country because of his ethnicity. More and more we are dealing with issues that have root in the Middle East and an agent of Zaf's calibre and background is invaluable.'

Harry's mouth was set in a grim line. 'We'll have to be prepared. If we are lucky enough to get him back alive he may not be the same Zaf we know.'

* * *

The next day passed as though time was moving through treacle. Zaf slept most of the day, with short periods of consciousness before he dozed off once again. George stopped by that morning and was pleased with Zaf's progress. He'd been concerned that the antibiotics wouldn't be enough to fight the infection, but Zaf's vital signs were all close to normal. George drew blood to have checked at the lab and made no other changes to his care. After promising to return after his shift, George left her with a kiss on the cheek.

Ruth normally enjoyed her days off, filling the time with walks through town to the beach and reading the classics she knew so well. Today, however, was spent between sitting at Zaf's bedside and discreetly looking out her windows for the men who were looking for Zaf. She tried reading aloud to him but she suspected that The Iliad was not one of his favorite books.

Finally, at dusk of the day that seemed to never end, Zaf awoke. Ruth was in the kitchen cleaning up after her meal and preparing a cup of tea when she heard a scratchy voice from the other room wondering where the hell he was.

'You're safe at my place, at least for now. You've been unconscious for much of the last three days,' she said as she sat in the chair next to the bed. 'How are you feeling?'

'Slightly more human than when I stumbled into that market,' he croaked out.

'Is that the last thing you remember?'

Zaf closed his eyes for a few moments. 'I think so, though for some reason the name Jamal is on my brain.'

Ruth smiled. 'That's the name I gave for you when the paramedics came. I had no idea why you were here but I didn't dare give anyone your real name.'

'Why Jamal?'

'Your legend from Operation Waterfall, shortly before I left. It popped into my head and seemed like as good a name as any.'

Zaf smiled. 'I'm not surprised you remember. You always knew everything.'

'Except for a way to save Harry without having to leave England,' she added with a sigh. 'But that's water under the bridge now, right?'

Zaf wisely decided to change the subject. 'Why are we here? I'm not complaining, mind you, but I'm still hooked up to IVs yet I'm not in hospital.'

Ruth nodded and told him everything that happened since he collapsed in at the market.

'You can tell me to mind my own business but who is George? You said he's a doctor that has been treating me, but there's something more, I think. I overheard you the other night when he was leaving.'

Ruth treated Zaf to an icy glare. 'I can't go back to London, Zaf. Am I supposed to live my life hoping that Harry will give up Five and track me down on this island to live happily ever after?' She looked away and took a deep breath. 'I'm sorry. That wasn't fair. George and I have been seeing one another, but I didn't enter into this lightly. We've only been together a few months. If it were up to him I'd be living with him and planning a wedding but I… well I can't make that leap just yet.'

Zaf closed his eyes briefly. 'You're right, you shouldn't spend your life pining away for Harry. Thank you for helping me and I hope I haven't caused problems for you and George.'

Ruth smiled as she shrugged her shoulders. 'He has asked questions that I can't and won't answer. We'll see what happens; I'm not too worried about that at this point.'

Zaf nodded up at the bag of fluid. 'How much longer do I have to be tethered to this?'

'You had a couple of infections that were causing problems, plus you were dehydrated. One of the infections was at your incision from what appears to be surgery and the other is some sort of respiratory infection. Are these as a result of your abduction?'

Zaf explained a bit about the circumstances surrounding his abduction – trying to get Asnik to safety and being shot and exposed to the virus which was much like the plague.

'The Redbacks had an antidote but they joked that it was for the virus that the Americans developed and not for whatever version the Iranians had. That's probably why I didn't develop the full-blown virus but also why I haven't fully recovered either.'

'Well, someone up there must like you because you managed to survive long enough to collapse at my feet.' She smiled at Zaf as he yawned. 'Are you hungry? You've been getting nutrition through the IV but I can make you some tea or toast if you're feeling up to it.'

He shook his head. 'I know I've been lousy company but I'm still tired. Can we catch up in the morning?'

Ruth reached forward and squeezed Zaf's hand. 'Of course. I'm right in the other room if you need anything.'


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** Thank you for your kind words and reviews. I am still actively writing this story, thus the slow pace of posting. Thank you for your patience.

 **Chapter Four**

 _Friday morning, 5 October_

'What's the price for a thought these days? A pence? Oh wait, they use euros here, so a cent?' Zaf said as he leaned against the door frame.

Ruth turned towards her visitor. 'You should be in bed,' she said with a smile.

Zaf returned the smile. 'Just what I want to hear from a pretty lady who lets me sleep in her bed.'

Ruth started to laugh. 'Good to hear you still have your sense of humour. Seriously though, you should still be in bed.'

'I needed to use the loo but you looked so deep in thought I had to say something. I'll be right back,' he said before moving down the hallway and closing the door behind him.

Ruth prepared a second cup of tea and a piece of toast, assuming that Zaf would be ready for some real food. It wasn't until he sat at the kitchen table that she realized something.

'You've taken out your IVs and catheter.'

'The IV bags were nearly empty anyway. As for the catheter, well there are some things a guy should just take care of on his own.' He flashed a smile before taking a bite of the toast with jam she'd placed in front of him.

Ruth smiled back. 'Okay, I'll give you that one. As long as you can get out of bed on your own I guess you won't need it anymore.' She decided to let Zaf finish his toast and tea before asking him any questions, but he beat her to the punch.

'How did you come to be on Cyprus?'

Ruth kept her eyes down at her tea cup as flashes of a tugboat leaving floated through her mind. She knew she could trust Zaf, but Ruth wasn't sure she was ready to relive the whole experience.

'Not much to tell. I worked my way through Europe on lesser known routes and eventually arrived in Athens. I'd never been before and after reading Classics at university, I decided it was as good a time as any to see all the places I'd read about. I ended up in a city along the coast where I met Giovanni. He was struggling to converse with a café owner and I came to his rescue. He's the captain of a freighter but he doesn't usually sail to Greece. Anyway, he told me that his next port of call was Cyprus and I decided to go along for the ride.'

Zaf raised an eyebrow. 'Giovanni, eh? Didn't know you spoke Italian.'

'Actually I don't, but he was fluent in English, so we managed just fine. And before you get any crazy ideas, Giovanni is married, a father of three sons, grandfather of two, and a staunch Catholic. He was a perfect gentleman.'

'So you hopped on his boat, landed here in Cyprus, and then what?'

'The ship docked in Limassol, on the south side of the island. Giovanni and his crew had a few days of shore leave so he showed me around. He rented a car and drove me here to Polis, where he and his family like to come on holiday. I saw a notice in the newspaper about the local hospital needed clerical help, so I stopped in and was hired on the spot. Giovanni helped me find a flat and then he had to leave. He was a guardian angel when I needed one. He calls me when his shipped is docked here on the island every few weeks and we meet for lunch. He treats me like the daughter he never had and wants me to come and live in Salerno so he can set me up with a nice man.' She smiled at the thought of her friend.

'It seems you already have a nice man, George' Zaf's voice was raspy but light in an effort to keep the conversation casual.

Ruth looked away from Zaf. She almost felt as though she was betraying Harry by talking to Zaf about George.

'Ruth, I'm not judging you for having moved on with your life. I don't know what the details of your relationship with Harry were, but it's not my business.'

Ruth turned back to Zaf. 'George is a good man. He's a doctor, obviously, and we met at the hospital. We've been together a few months. He's a widower with a young son, Nico, who's eight. And for the record, Harry and I weren't in a relationship.'

Zaf started to laugh until he saw the look on Ruth's face. 'That may be what you think, Ruth, but the rest of us could see there was a relationship beyond simply boss and co-worker.'

Ruth started to sputter a response but Zaf continued. 'As for the record, Ruth, none of us were bothered by you and Harry seeing each other. This life is hard enough and to find someone special who can understand the difficulties of this life, well that's relationship gold. Besides, you and Harry would be the last two people to use your relationship to gain an advantage over someone. I'm sorry for how everything ended with Harry and with Cotterdam, but if you tell me you're happy here Ruth, and that this is where you are meant to be, I'll leave just as soon as I'm able and I won't tell a soul where you are, alright?'

Ruth was caught off guard by Zaf's statement and simply nodded in understanding.

'Not that I don't love seeing you again, but when can I leave? I'd like to get back to London and start doing my job again. You haven't contacted the Grid, have you?'

Ruth shook her head. 'No, I wasn't certain what your situation was and I didn't want to compromise you. George is the only person who knows you are here, but obviously he thinks you are Jamal Davi.'

'Good. I don't know if it's safe to do so. The men who took me implied that they had agents inside every intelligence organization in Europe, as well as other places. I can't imagine anyone from the Grid being turned, but what if someone has? I have to be careful how I make contact.'

'I'll think about it. I've been watching for the men who took you but I haven't seen them around here. I did spot them the other day when I ran out to the market for a few things, though.'

'How do you know them? I know you had a knack for having connections, but do you really know everyone already?' Zaf asked with a slight smile.

'Polis only has around 3,000 people, so it's not a large city. No, I happened to be at the front desk of the hospital when two men came in asking for you by your given name. Since you were admitted under a different name, it was easy to say you weren't there. I knew, though, that my simply telling them you weren't there wasn't enough to deter them. I doctored your records to show that you'd been admitted a few days before, but George and I moved you out of the hospital the next night.'

'What did you tell him?'

'Mostly the truth; that two men came in and asked for you by name, but I didn't tell him which name. Since we suspected you'd been tortured, I convinced George that I needed to move you to my place. He was reluctant at first, but you were responding well to the antibiotics and fluids and as long as I was going to stay with you, he relented.'

'So we need to figure out a way to safely contact the Grid. We should also consider a way to get me off the island safely if that doesn't work. And considering I don't have a passport that may not be so easy.'

Ruth nodded. 'A challenge certainly, but not impossible. We could go to the Embassy in Nicosia; I'm sure they would have a secure way to contact the Grid, provided we can convince them of who you are.'

Zaf shook his head. 'No. I can't trust that the Redbacks don't have contacts inside the Embassy. By now they've probably put out word to their network that I'm missing. They told me over and over how valuable I was; they aren't going to let me escape without a fight.' Zaf reached across the table to grasp Ruth's hand. 'I beg you, please don't contact the Embassy. I will kill myself before I let myself be taken by this group again. Please, let's try and figure something else out first.'

Ruth could see the terror in her friend's eyes and knew that he was dead serious about not contacting the Embassy.

Ruth squeezed Zaf's hand in response and nodded. 'Okay, I promise I won't contact the Embassy without your permission. We'll brainstorm and figure out how to get you off the island.'

Zaf smiled in relief. 'Thank you, Ruth, truly.' His shoulder sagged as the tension left his body and after he took a deep breath, he wrinkled his nose. 'While you think can I use your shower? I honestly don't remember the last time I had one and it smells like I need one.'

'You had a sponge bath at the hospital, but…' Ruth started before being interrupted.

'Please tell me it was given by a beautiful young nurse,' Zaf said.

'Beautiful is a good word… to describe Nikolas,' she finished with a smile.

Zaf groaned and dropped his head to the table as Ruth laughed. 'I'll get you a fresh towel and a chair, just in case you need to sit. Oh, and I hope you don't mind, but I took the liberty of buying you a few things. The clothes you were wearing before were thrown away at the hospital and we dressed you in scrubs to bring you here. I'll set those clothes in the bathroom and you can pick what you like.'

* * *

Harry looked up at the knocking and waved Adam and Ros into his office. The pair sat on the minimalist furniture that passed for a sofa in front of his desk and Ros waited until Harry finished what he was doing and looked at her before speaking.

'My contact from Athens has made a report. The farmhouse was abandoned but there were signs of recent inhabitants. They also found some bloody rags, suggesting that someone with an injury was there. Greek Intelligence has been checking border crossings and found a note from a crossing into Turkey. An agent working at the crossing noted that a truck with five men passed through recently. All five men had Turkish passports, but one of the men appeared to be ill. He was barely conscious and the other men said he was sick and being brought home to be treated. Everything else appeared to be in order so they were allowed to cross but the agent made a note of the incident because something didn't feel right.'

'And you feel confident that this could be Zaf and his captors?' Harry asked.

'We've calculated driving times and possible routes, and this certainly could be the men we're looking for,' Adam added.

Harry nodded but didn't immediately say anything in response. He pushed his chair back, stood, and then walked around to the front of his desk, running his hands over his face before resting them at the back of his neck. Leaning against his desk, he lifted his head to his officers. 'So what's the next move?' Harry asked.

'My contact is continuing to look into the matter. He has a few trusted associates that have sources in the area. I should hear back from him in 48 hours or sooner if they find something,' said Ros.

Harry nodded. 'Very well. Let me know when you hear something.'


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** Thank you for your reviews. A big thanks to r4ven3 for reading these chapters to ensure they are ready for public consumption.

* * *

 **Chapter Five**

 _Friday afternoon, 5 October_

George walked out of the bedroom and joined Ruth in the sitting room.

'He's much better than when he arrived, but he still needs time to recover. He needs to rest and rebuild his strength.'

'I'm glad to hear that. He seems much better, but still, it's good to hear you say that,' she repeated.

'Now can we talk about moving on with our life? In another few days I think he'll be well enough to travel back to England; surely he has family or friends who can help him there.'

Ruth could hear the annoyance creeping into George's voice. They've had a variation on this conversation before, about whom Zaf really is and what he could have done to cause him to be abducted and tortured.

'I told you, I've seen those men around that came looking for him at the hospital. It's not safe for him to just leave and fly home.'

'But why? Ruth, please, what aren't you telling me? Why can't we just call the police? Surely they can arrest the men and Jamal will be safe.' George was pacing back and forth in the small room.

'And what will we tell them? It's Jamal's word against the four of them. And once we make a formal complaint, the men will know he's here in Polis. They'll simply wait for the right moment and abduct him again, and probably me with him! Is that what you want?'

'Of course not! But do you really think that Jamal can stay here indefinitely? He can't hide here forever. Ruth, I need you to tell me the truth. If we are going to continue our relationship, I need to know that we are honest with one another and right now, I don't believe that you have been honest with me.'

Ruth looked up at George, who stopped his pacing to stand before her position on the sofa. She understood why he was feeling as he did, but her commitment to the Official Secrets Act wasn't invalidated simply because she no longer worked for Five. Granted, as far as Five and the whole of Britain was concerned she was dead, but she knew she wasn't and she still felt a duty to uphold the Act. And if she told George the reason she could tell him the truth was because of her Official Secrets Act oath, well, wasn't that as good as telling him the truth? He wouldn't be satisfied by her saying she couldn't talk about it because of the OSA; he would have even more questions, not to mention that telling him would confirm that Zaf is with Five, putting him at further risk.

'Are you going to answer me?' George didn't bother to hide his impatience with her.

She stood up and moved across the room to put some distance between herself and George. 'I'm sorry. I can't answer your questions and I know you don't understand why but I can't.'

George didn't stick around to hear the rest of her explanation. 'I've heard enough excuses. You need to decide what's important in your life: our relationship or protecting this friend of yours and your secrets. I need an answer from you by Monday. Make your decision,' he said before walking out the door and letting it slam.

Adam walked into Harry's office without knocking and noticed the odd look that passed quickly across his boss's face. 'Latest intel from my friends in Syria is that the Redbacks may have a base of operations somewhere in Cyprus. Six have a few assets scattered around the island so I have someone making discreet inquiries. We may not find Zaf, but if we can discover where this group is operating out of, we may make some headway into shutting them down.'

Harry nodded in reply. 'Good. Getting rid of the Redbacks may make for strange bedfellows, but we can't have this group putting a price on the head of intelligence officers, no matter what flag they operate under. Keep me updated.'

* * *

 _Saturday morning, 6 October_

Ruth was at the market picking up fresh bread, fruits, and vegetables when she spotted the men who'd come into the hospital looking for Zaf. They seemed to still be searching for him, not believing that he could vanish into thin air. She tried to avoid them but she was certain that one of the men she'd seen at the hospital noticed her and watched her as she moved through the market. Ruth took a circuitous route home, but the men continued to tail her. Finally she slipped into a small boutique and left through the back door, giving the men the slip.

She knew that she needed to get Zaf out of not just Polis but Cyprus as well and soon. Sooner or later someone at the hospital would talk about Zaf and it would be better for them both if they were no longer there. As for George... She was fond of him but there wasn't a question in her mind or her heart about what she needed to do and that was to help Zaf. Once he was safely back home, she would disappear once again and start over, just as she'd done the year before.

She stood in the courtyard area outside her home, watching for any tails to turn up, when she heard a door open. Turning to see who was leaving, she was shocked to see Zaf walking out her front door.

Rushing to him she whispered loudly, 'What are you doing? Where are you going?' She tried to usher him back into her house but Zaf was just strong enough to resist her.

'No, I can't impose on you any longer…' he started but was cut off by Ruth's muttering about obstinate men.

'I saw the men who abducted you at the market this morning and two of them started following me. One of them was one of the men who were looking for you at the hospital. Get back in the house!' Ruth tried to keep her voice at a whisper so as to not draw undue attention from her neighbours.

Zaf allowed himself to be shuffled back into the flat. 'Tell me what happened,' he asked.

'I realized quickly that they were following me; they weren't very good at staying out of sight. I took my time at the market and made a few other stops around town. I came face to face with him a few times and simply smiled and pretended not to notice him.'

'Ruth, this is why I need to leave. I won't be a danger to you if I'm not here.'

'We both know that's not true. If those men find out that you've been with me, they would have no problem doing whatever they thought necessary to get an answer out of me. We both need to leave this island and I have a few ideas how we might do that.'

'But what about George?'

'Let me worry about him. But first, I think I know how we can contact the Grid. Sit down, we'll have tea, and get this all figured out.'

* * *

 _Monday Noon, 8 October_

As Ruth took one last look around the house, she heard the front door open and close and she knew the next few minutes would be unpleasant. A moment later George rounded the corner.

'I'm surprised to see you here.'

'Yes, I expect you are. I'm glad that you're here though, there are things to be said.'

George leaned back against the counter. 'That doesn't sound like good news to me,' he replied.

Ruth smiled slightly. 'I didn't want to leave without telling you in person. You deserve that and more, honestly.'

'So you are leaving with Jamal? Were you honest with me, about there being nothing between you?'

'Yes and it's still the truth. We're good friends; nothing more. He went out on a limb to help me when I needed to escape so now it's my turn to repay the favor. I'm helping him get out of Cyprus safely.'

'You've never explained why he simply can't hop a flight to London and be done with it,' George said, his patience wearing thin.

Ruth sighed. 'I know and I wish I could tell you the entire story, but I can't. I realize you're going to be angry with me over this and I accept that.'

'If you can't fly back to London, where are you flying to?'

Ruth gently shook her head. 'I'm not going to tell you that for your own protection. It's safer for you if you don't know where we've gone.'

She moved to stand next to George, who refused to meet her gaze.

'What about Nico?' George asked in a quiet voice. 'He's fond of you and has been asking why you've not been around these past few days.'

'I'm fond of him as well. I know this will hurt him and I've never wanted to do that. You can tell him what you like about me; whatever you feel is best.'

George finally looked at her, a mix of sadness and anger in his eyes.

'I don't expect you to understand why I'm doing this. It wasn't an easy decision for me and I knew that whatever my choice someone would be hurt.'

George looked away again, refusing to meet her eyes.

'Thank you for everything. You've been so kind to me and that's something I will never forget. You are a good and wonderful man and father and I wish you the best of everything.' She turned and walked out of the house. As she turned to pull out of the drive, she noticed him standing at the window, watching as she drove away.

After stopping to post a parcel, Ruth made her way back to her flat. Zaf, though still weak from his injuries, had started to wipe down surfaces and erasing evidence of their having been there. Not that they expected the Redbacks would be coming in with a SOCO-like team, but the less proof they could provide that she and Zaf had been there the better. They still didn't know to what extent the group had connections in the intelligence agencies of Europe, but they'd agreed to presume that aside from a handful of assets, there was no one they could fully trust.

'What time do we need to leave?' Zaf asked as he moved into the sitting room.

'The shortest route is just over an hour's drive. The ship is set to sail at seven tomorrow morning, but we need to meet Giovanni by nine tonight.'

'As much as I'd like to play tourist in Limassol, I'm not quite up to the task. Besides, it's probably best that we stay out of sight as much as possible,' Zaf noted.

'Agreed. Let's leave at six; I'd rather waste time once we're there.'

Zaf nodded in agreement. 'Anything else that needs to be done?'

'I have to check for a response from Malcolm. The email address and password are still valid, so he should be checking it on a regular basis, unless something has happened...' She trailed off, not wanting to complete that thought.

'Malcolm is fine and if there's no response then there's a perfectly good reason why he's not able to reply right now. Let's concentrate on getting off Cyprus and then we'll worry about the next step.'

Ruth nodded. 'You're right. I'm probably overreacting. I'll check for a message from Malcolm right before we leave.'


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** Thank you again for your reviews. They remind me of why I put myself through this challenge. My apologies on the late posting of this chapter. R4ven3 is graciously doing the beta work on this story and I sent her this chapter and she pointed out where I needed to do some work and she was right. So I did some work and she's given me the thumbs up to proceed. My heartfelt thanks to her for her honesty which is making this story better.

* * *

 **Chapter Six**

 _Monday evening, 8 October_

'I don't suppose there's a direct route to Limassol from here,' Zaf asked as he lay in the back seat of Ruth's car.

'As direct as can be when there are mountains. We'll take the B7 to Paphos and then the A6 to Limassol. It will be dusk by the time we get to the harbour, so provided we don't pick up a tail we can try and find something to eat.'

'Should I assume by your lack of comment earlier that you didn't hear anything from Malcolm?'

'Yes. I'm trying not to worry, but he told me that he checks that account every few days. I should have had a response from him by now.'

'Maybe he's on holiday. Surely the man must take a break from technology every now and then.'

Ruth smiled. 'That would be our luck. Malcolm, the man who hadn't taken a holiday in all my time on the Grid, finally decides to take one and eschew technology right when we need him.'

Zaf laughed lightly. 'Okay, so maybe it's a little far-fetched. Completely possible though,' he added.

Ruth nodded in reply. 'And much better than the alternative scenarios that could easily take over my mind.'

'Yeah. Speaking of unpleasant thoughts, do you think the men from the market were suspicious of you?'

'One guy followed me for a while, but I didn't go anywhere near home and or my car, so I think we're safe. There's enough traffic between Polis and Paphos in the evening that we should blend in.' She continued to keep an eye on the cars behind her. 'You've not said, but do you know why they brought you here? To Cyprus?'

She heard Zaf exhale loudly. 'I don't. I was so delirious before you found me. I'm pretty certain we came through Turkey and I heard them mention Famagusta; that's on the east coast.' He noticed Ruth looking at him in the rear view mirror with an amused look. 'I looked it up one day when you were out. But I don't know if it was a destination or just another transfer point.'

Conversation after that died for a while, neither of them wanting to think about what may have happened to Zaf had he not found Ruth.

Thirty minutes later, shortly after Ruth merged onto the A6, traffic thinned and she noticed an older, dark colour car that was still behind them. It wasn't impossible that another car could be making the same journey, but Ruth wasn't willing to take any risks. She sped up slightly and noted that the other car did the same. There were other cars on the roadway so Ruth decided to keep in sight of them and hope that the tail car really wasn't a tail car or that they at least wouldn't try anything with other vehicles around.

About 15 minutes outside Limassol Ruth decided she needed Zaf's help.

'Zaf, I need you to wake up,' she said in a loud but calm voice.

Proving that he'd not lost all of his spook sense, he replied quickly. 'What's the matter, Ruth?'

'I think we may have been followed. There were too many cars from Polis to Paphos to be sure but one has stayed behind me, matching my speed, since we've been on the A6. I've been sticking close to other vehicles, presuming that they wouldn't try anything where there are witnesses, but we're getting close to Limassol. I need to know what to do.'

Zaf glanced up towards the rear window and the light shining in. 'Are they directly behind us or is another car in between us and them?'

'There's a car between us and them. Why?'

'Because I need to see where we are going and I can't do that from back here. As long as they aren't right behind us, I'm coming up to the front seat.'

Ruth watched her side mirror for any evidence that the tail car was moving but by the time Zaf was slouched in the front seat, there'd been no change.

'What should we do?' Ruth asked. 'If we go straight to the harbor they'll know we're leaving on one of the ships.'

'Do you have a number for Giovanni, a way to contact him?' Zaf asked.

Ruth nodded.

'Call him and see if there is someplace else we can meet, someplace with private parking. An apartment block, a hotel, or even an office complex. In the meantime, let's just keep driving at a leisurely speed and hope it's just a coincidence.'

* * *

The four men continued to follow the compact white car. Josef, the driver, had set the speed control and stayed behind a small black truck to stay out of sight. The men had had no luck in finding their prisoner in Polis and none of them wanted to turn up in Famagusta without him. The consequences could be deadly. Their prisoner was a desired commodity, an officer of the British Security Services, and a sale for him had already been arranged.

It was Oleg who had noticed that the woman at the hospital was also at the market a few days later. After his initial visit to the hospital, Oleg had returned to question the woman again, but she was not working. When he asked at the hospital about her, the woman working said her name was Ruth and that she hadn't been in to work since that day.

Oleg had spent much of his time the next few days at the market, watching for her while the others searched the town. His patience paid off when she walked past him on Saturday morning. Josef had joined him that day and the two men casually tailed her. She walked past them a few times, smiling brightly at both men, but Oleg noticed that the smile didn't reach her eyes. She entered a small shop of women's clothing, so he and Josef split up and casually stood at either end of the block, but she never came out. After 15 minutes, Oleg entered the shop to find it empty except for the shopkeeper, who'd admitted that a woman had exited through the rear door shortly after entering the store. Oleg went out the back door as well but it opened onto an alley with a maze of walkways and doors to other buildings. He walked back out front to collect Josef and decide their next move.

It was earlier this evening when they were forced to give up their search and drive to the operations base. They stole a car and switched the plates to avoid detection. By sheer luck a car passed them before they turned onto the motorway and Josef recognized the woman they'd followed on Saturday morning. She was driving alone but the men quickly agreed to follow her, hoping it would lead to their prisoner. During the drive they debated whether to run her off the road or just follow the car but traffic was heavy this evening. Trying to stop her car would draw too much attention so they decided to simply follow.

A little over an hour later the car approached Limassol. The woman's car, Ruth's car, Josef reminded himself, seemed to be randomly driving. After a quarter of an hour she seemed to have a destination in mind and he and his mates hoped this was the big break they needed.

* * *

Ruth slowed her speed to just under the speed limit, hoping the car she thought was tailing her would maintain speed and pass her by. Her intuition, however, concurred with Zaf's assessment, so she made the call to Giovanni with a plea for help and a promise for more information later. A few minutes later, she disconnected the phone after dictating directions to Zaf.

'Giovanni is sending us to the Olympic Residence. It's a hotel near the sea but far from the port. He says the shipping company owners stay there when they are in town and he's on good terms with the concierge staff. They have secure parking on site and he's going to call me back with what to do when we arrive.'

Zaf remained slouched in the front seat. 'This is a terrible time to ask this but do you trust Giovanni completely?' His voice was apprehensive and quiet.

Ruth understood that his question was driven by his horrible experiences over the past few weeks and his desire to not fall into the hands of the Redbacks once again.

'I know where you are coming from but I do trust him, as best I can trust anyone without the resources of the Grid to run a background check. He had ample opportunity to treat me poorly when I sailed with him from Greece and I've never been uncomfortable in his presence. My gut tells me that I can trust him, and my gut instinct has been well used in the last year.'

Zaf gave her a slight smile. 'Fair enough. Harry always trusted your instinct, so if that's the best we have right now, that's what we'll use.' As they passed a road sign, he warned Ruth that the exit for the hotel was approaching. 'Here goes nothing,' he mumbled as they left the motorway and moved to the city streets.

As they suspected, the tail car continued to follow them. Ruth kept her speed at the limit, not wanting to let on that she was aware of being followed. There was enough traffic on the street to put a bit more distance between the two cars, though she noticed the tail car continue through a red light to stay in sight of her car.

'They just ran a red to keep pace with us,' she noted to Zaf.

He acknowledged her statement with a terse nod while he continued to provide directions to the hotel. As they approached another light, Giovanni rang through to Ruth's mobile.

'We're nearly there,' she said. Zaf could hear him speaking on the other end but couldn't make out the words.

'Turn left up here, on John F. Kennedy. How strange it is to have a street named after an American president here,' Zaf commented as he watched the street signs. A minute later he added, 'Turn right up here on Kerkiras.'

'Giovanni says the parking entrance is ahead on our left, before the tower.' Ruth glanced in the rear view mirror to confirm that they were still being followed. She turned off the street and up to an overhead door. A keypad on a post was within reach when she lowered her window. Giovanni provided her with a code and the large door lifted to allow the car entrance.

'Where are they?' Zaf asked.

'They must still be up on the street. They didn't pull into the drive,' she said as the door lowered back into place. Once it was down Zaf sat up higher in his seat, allowing him to take in the surroundings.

After a last few words with Giovanni, Ruth moved carefully around the garage to a space marked with the number 31. 'He says we can park here and he'll have someone retrieve the car tomorrow after the ship has left port.'

They each turned in their seats and watched for any movement but the space was quiet. After a few minutes, they exited the car, glad for the opportunity to stand and flex their limbs. Ruth noted a sign for the lift so they grabbed their bags from the boot and moved quickly in that direction.

Zaf nervously stepped from one foot to the other. 'What makes you think those men won't be waiting in the hotel lobby when the lift doors open?'

'This lift doesn't go to the lobby. The concierge will meet us on the first floor and show us to a private reception room. Giovanni will meet us there shortly.' She reached out and placed her hand on Zaf's forearm. 'Relax Zaf, we're going to be fine. You don't want to draw attention to us.' She slid her hand down his arm to his hand, which she squeezed gently.

The lift doors opened and Ruth felt a bit like she was taking a step back towards being Ruth Evershed.

* * *

Josef pulled into a car park across the street as the white car disappeared below the tower. The men briefly debated what to do next before it was decided that Oleg and Markos would go into the hotel.

The men were getting desperate as the messages from their bosses in Famagusta were more threatening. If they couldn't find Zafar Younis, perhaps they could take the woman named Ruth with them and she could tell them where to find Zafar.

* * *

Ruth and Zaf sat in the reception room trying to look as though they were simply waiting for a friend but in reality both were on edge, knowing that someone had followed them to the hotel. An older man walked into the room and Zaf tensed while Ruth released a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

'Katherine, so lovely to see you again.'

'Giovanni, you as well,' Ruth replied as the two embraced. 'Thank you for your help. This is my good friend, Jamal.'

Zaf stood for the introduction and shook Giovanni's hand. 'Nice to meet you, Giovanni, and as Katherine said, thank you for your help.'

Giovanni waved away Zaf's words. 'Whatever Katherine asks, I will help. I am needed back at the port to oversee final preparations. I need to speak with the concierge office first, so I will meet you in the secure parking area in a few minutes.'

* * *

After a casual walk around the lobby, Oleg took a seat that allowed him to watch the comings and goings of guests and staff. Monday evening wasn't a busy time for the hotel which meant there wasn't much to see but it also made his presence more noticeable. He flipped through a magazine in an effort to look like he was simply waiting for someone to arrive.

Marcos was trying to gain access to the private parking area the white car had entered. Despite his profession, he was a charming man who would flirt with women and men if it served his purposes. The evening hours meant there was less staff on duty, and hopefully less of a chance he would be stopped before he found his way to the garage. He slipped through a door marked 'stairs' and began his descent.

* * *

Ruth and Zaf had waited in the reception room until a staff member informed them that Giovanni was on his way to the garage. When the doors slid open, they stepped out of the lift and walked over to Giovanni, who was waiting beside a large sedan with tinted rear windows. He opened the door for Ruth and Zaf walked around to the other side. Once settled in, Giovanni climbed in the front passenger side and the car made its way out of the garage.

No one noticed a man standing near the staff door using his mobile phone.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** Thank you again for your reviews and kind words. A big thank you once again to r4ven3 for helping to whip this story (and me) into shape.

* * *

 **Chapter Seven**

 _Late Monday evening, 8 October_

Ruth and Zaf settled into their cabin on the shipping vessel _Speranza_. Ruth took comfort in the fact that _Speranza_ meant 'hope' in Italian and tried to have faith that she could get Zaf safely back to England and not expose herself to the wrong people in the process.

Giovanni had hesitated when Ruth asked for her and Zaf to share a cabin, but when she explained that Zaf was recovering from an illness and that she and Zaf were just good friends who would do nothing to offend his Catholic faith, he relented. The cabin was small with bunk beds but included a port hole to allow fresh air and neither Zaf nor Ruth could complain.

'How long did he say it would take to get to Italy?' Zaf asked as he settled on his bunk. His backpack sat at the foot of the bed, his few belongings not yet unpacked.

'About a week. The ship has a lighter load than expected due to a shipment from Cyprus not being ready to leave, so the journey may go faster. The crew has incentive to get there early because it will mean extra shore time for them,' Ruth replied as she stowed her gear.

In the days leading up to the departure for Limassol, Ruth and Zaf had developed a cover story for why they needed to get Zaf out of Cyprus undetected and without a passport. Giovanni knew Ruth as Katherine, a woman who escaped from an abusive relationship, the same story she'd told George. They built upon that story and hoped that it was plausible enough to get them on to Giovanni's ship and off the island.

The drive from the hotel to the port was quiet. Giovanni hadn't demanded an explanation immediately for the cloak and dagger routine, for which Ruth and Zaf were thankful. While Ruth trusted Giovanni, his driver was unknown to them both and the fewer people who knew their situation, the better. They would soon be off Cyprus and as far as they could tell, their departure remained undetected.

* * *

Marcos was feeling frustrated. He tried to call Josef, to tell him to follow the dark sedan, but the call wouldn't connect due to his location in the parking garage. He couldn't see the car registration number because he was facing the side of the car and trying to stay out of sight. He heard the older man and woman greet one another, using the names Giovanni and Katherine, though he and his associates had been told her name was Ruth. Most importantly, Zafar was with them, alive and well.

* * *

 _Tuesday morning, 9 October_

'My apologies for my absence last evening. There are always many last minute issues before we leave port,' Giovanni stated as he entered the dining area. 'Signorina Katherine, I am so happy to have you on my ship once again,' he said as he greeted Ruth with an embrace and a kiss on each cheek.

'It is good to see you as well. Once again, you have come to my rescue,' she said, which made Giovanni laugh.

'My mamma, bless her soul, raised me to be good to women. My babbo, he tell me to listen to Mamma. It has not yet steered me wrong,' he said and Ruth smiled at his story.

'Signore Jamal, welcome aboard the _Speranza_. The cabin is acceptable?' he inquired, extending his hand to Zaf's in greeting.

Zaf shook his hand. 'The cabin is wonderful and I slept well. Thank you again for your help.'

Giovanni clapped his hands together then gestured to the table. 'Sit! Let us eat and you can tell me about this grand adventure you are on.'

Over breakfast, Ruth and Zaf told Giovanni a little more about the events that led them to be aboard his ship. He knew that Ruth (as Katherine) had left an abusive relationship in London. She explained that Jamal was a friend from London, one who had helped her leave the city. He worked for Scotland Yard, tracking stolen Iraqi artifacts that had turned up in London for sale, and in the course of his work, was abducted. That they crossed paths in Polis was purely a coincidence and Jamal had asked Katherine for help in getting back to London.

'The men who abducted me told him that they had people within Scotland Yard and everywhere on Cyprus, even the British Embassy. They tortured me for information and I'm terrified, for myself or worse, for Katherine, to fall into their control. I fear even a phone call to my supervisor could lead to trouble. I have a good friend in Sicily; he and Katherine will see that I make it to the Embassy in Rome.'

The ship was to sail direct from Limassol to Palermo on the north Sicilian coast. Zaf's trusted contact from his days at Six lived on the other side of Sicily and while still at Ruth's flat, he'd sent him an encrypted note asking for his help. Matteo's response was swift and offered whatever assistance he could provide to help Zaf.

Ruth asked if there was a way off the ship that didn't involve customs, given that Jamal didn't have a passport. She knew that Giovanni was a highly-principled man and she didn't want to offend his sense of right and wrong.

'We can get you off the ship quietly in Palermo. Then you hire a car and drive to see your friend.'

Ruth glanced at Zaf, who's barely perceptible nod showed his agreement with Giovanni's suggestion.

'How far of a drive is it to the other side of the island from Palermo?' Zaf asked.

Giovanni finished his coffee before answering. 'A few hundred kilometers? You could be there in a few hours.'

'That sounds good,' said Ruth.

Giovanni excused himself shortly thereafter to attend to ship's business. Ruth and Zaf took a slow stroll on deck, enjoying the sunshine. After making it about halfway around the ship, Zaf suggested that he return to their room, saying he wanted to lie down and rest.

Ruth helped him to their room and once Zaf was settled, she grabbed a book and made her way to the observation room. It was empty this time of day, the sailors busy with duties, but it allowed her to enjoy the view of the Mediterranean Sea and to read a book.

She returned to the room a couple of hours later to find Zaf awake.

'You okay,' she asked?

He nodded.

'Do you want to talk about what you went through with them?' She looked down at her hands. 'I understand if you don't, but I'm willing to listen if you need to tell someone about what happened.'

Zaf was quiet for a few moments, and Ruth decided to abandon the question.

'They did horrible, horrible things to me, Ruth. I know that I need to talk about my experience but I don't want to burden you with that knowledge,' he said quietly.

'It's all right. I can't imagine what you've been through, but I will listen to whatever you feel comfortable telling with me, whenever you feel ready to talk,' she said. 'In the meantime, should we discuss what our plans are once we make it to Matteo's? And, not that I'm saying we can't trust your friend, but we should have an alternate plan of where to go and who to try and contact if we can't make it to Catania.'

Zaf nodded in agreement. 'We need to be flexible in our plans, and we should try and map our route back to London. We'll also each need passports. You have just the one you've not yet used?'

'Yes. I used one name until I arrived in Greece, then shredded and burned that passport and began using Katherine Miller. Once I settled in Cyprus, I started going by my middle name but it allowed all my official documents to be in the name of Katherine Miller. And the third one I've never used; it was my last option if anything went wrong.'

'Well, I should have a couple to use as well and we should get you at least one more. It might be a good idea to have a set of documents with the same last name, so we can travel as a married couple if needed,' Zaf suggested.

Ruth raised her eyebrows. 'Is that your way of getting fresh with me?' she asked, the side of her mouth twitching.

'Whatever it takes, Ruth, whatever it takes,' he said as she laughed in response.

'How will you explain to Matteo that I need a passport as well? We need a story that explains that.'

'Good point. I'll come up with a reason,' Zaf responded.

Ruth nodded. 'Enough talk. It's time for lunch. You ready to eat?'

'Yes, though afterwards I need to sit on deck. I'm feeling a little seasick.'

'Okay, food first and then sunshine. Once we're back in our cabin we'll start making more solid plans. I don't want to discuss it where a member of the crew may overhear us.'

* * *

Ros stared at the screen, wishing the words that recently appeared conveyed better news. Lifting her eyes, she glanced around the Grid. Harry's office was empty; he and Adam were meeting with the Home Secretary, but in checking the time, she realized they should be returning soon. As if her thoughts were brought to reality, the pods spun around to deliver Harry and Adam onto the Grid. Ros stood to greet the men as they approached.

'Another charming visit with Blake, I presume?'

'Something like that,' Adam said as Harry checked his mobile.

'I've had a message from my contact in Greece. Do you have time to discuss it?'

Harry nodded and then tilted his head towards his office, indicating that she and Adam should follow. They did so, with Adam closing the door behind them.

'It's not what we were hoping for. My contact reported that they have no further word on where the Redbacks or Zaf may be. They are still confident that it was them that passed through border control from Greece into Turkey, but from there the trail seems to have disappeared.'

'Have we learned anything from other contacts in intelligence in Europe? Places this group likes to meet, other agents that they are suspected of abducting, anything?' Harry asked.

Adam shook his head. 'Nothing yet. I've sent word to my contacts in Syria just in case they've made it that far. I hate to even think this way, but we need to consider the possibility that Zaf is dead. Remember the report from border control? One of the men was sick. Zaf was infected and he'd been shot. There's a real possibility that he's not even alive anymore.'

The room fell silent; none of the three occupants wanted to admit that death might be a preferable option to the torture that likely would befall their friend.

'Until we hear back from Adam's contacts, we continue to keep our ears open for any signs of the group's whereabouts.' Harry's mobile beeped with a specific tone that they knew signaled a message from Malcolm.

As Harry checked the message, Ros leaned towards Adam. 'I hope that's a message to say he'll be back at work soon. Steven from Section A is nice, but he doesn't quite have Malcolm's finesse.'

'That's what happens when we hire whiz kids out of primary school. Steven doesn't look much older than Wes if you ask me.'

'I think you'll find that it's more a case of you getting older than it is of them getting younger,' Ros retorted just as Harry looked up from his phone.

'Bad news. Malcolm's bronchitis has progressed to pneumonia. He's been admitted to St. Thomas'. He says they are hoping that with a few days of antibiotics they can get it under control but it will likely be a week or more before he's back at work.

'Looks like we're stuck with the whiz kid for a while longer,' Adam retorted as they walked out of Harry's office.

* * *

 _Tuesday afternoon_

The four men sat around a battered table in the small flat they'd been directed to late last night. They were in better spirits this morning after the sighting of Zafar with Ruth, the woman they'd been trailing.

Markos had been frustrated that not only had his call to Josef not gone through, but the door from the garage back to the stairs required a key for access, locking him in the garage. It was several minutes before he found his way out, by which time the sedan was long gone. He walked back into the hotel, both to collect Oleg and to ask about older man who had driven away with Ruth and Zafar. The concierge staff member was new in the job and only knew the man as Giovanni, a local businessman. A report was made to their superiors in Famagusta, who told them to wait at the flat for instructions on how to proceed.

By late morning, they had information and instructions. There were a few possibilities as to the man's identity, but the most likely was Giovanni Mancini, who worked for Amathus Aegeas, a shipping company with stops in Limassol, Cyprus. Before long the men were on their way to the port to see what they could discover.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

 _Wednesday afternoon, 10 October_

'Harry, I've got something,' Ros said as she walked into Harry's office with Adam following behind.

Harry swallowed the whisky he'd just sipped. 'What is it?' he asked with a sigh. It had been a long day of writing and reviewing reports related to their current operations as well as follow up information on Asnik and Zaf.

'I passed along Adam's intel about the Redbacks having a possible base in Cyprus to my contact in Greece. He took some personal time and drove down into Turkey and looked at possible ways to get to Cyprus without raising too much attention. He hit pay dirt, finding a local shipping company that also makes runs to Cyprus. My contact claimed to be working with Interpol on smuggling operations and implied that smugglers were using smaller shipping services to move their goods around, unbeknownst to the shipping operators, who would be left holding contraband were it to be discovered.'

'So what did he find?' Adam asked, hoping for good news.

'Five men, one of whom appeared to be quite ill, paid for transport to Polis, Cyprus about 10 days ago. Their story was that they were taking their sick friend home to his family,' Ros said.

Harry looked at his agents seated in front of him. 'And you feel confident that the sick man is Zaf,' he asked Ros.

'I think there's a strong likelihood, Harry. I'd like to fly to Cyprus and track them down.'

Harry was quiet as he considered the request.

'I'll go with her,' Adam said. 'We can pose as a couple and it'll be less suspicious.'

Harry shook his head. 'No, Ros will go alone but first we need to wrap up the Davidson operation. From what you've told me we should have the information we need in the next day or so from Davidson and then you can leave for Cyprus. Adam, I can't spare both of you from the Grid right now, especially with Zaf gone. If Ros…'

'When I find something,' she interrupted, 'I'll let you know. I'm not leaving Cyprus without Zaf,' she said. 'I'll get what we need from Davidson and file my travel details with Jo,' she said before leaving the room.

Harry and Adam looked at one another. 'Well, I guess that's decided,' Harry noted. 'Since Malcolm's out, make sure she gets the right kit so we can keep track of her. We don't need the Redbacks to pick her up, too.'

* * *

 _Thursday evening, 11 October_

Ruth and Zaf had mapped out possible routes back to London. Without knowing how good their false passports would be, they weren't sure they wanted to risk flying directly from Palermo to London. There was also a greater risk that someone from the Security Services connected with the Redbacks would discover their plans. Zaf had admitted to Ruth, when they were still back in Polis, that he would commit suicide before allowing himself to be taken again and his position had not softened since then, not that she could blame him.

Ruth herself wasn't exactly keen about flying to London. She was officially dead, after all, and if the wrong person was to discover she was alive and in London, then everything she went through this past year would be wasted. A flight to London was quickly ruled out. They opted for a slower pace, something that would allow them to be flexible in their plans at a moment's notice and would keep them under the radar.

Adding to their challenge was that Ruth hadn't received a response from Malcolm before she and Zaf had left Cyprus. Ruth tried not to think the worst; that he'd been killed on an op or something as stupid as getting hit by a bus, but this was Malcolm. He's not someone who would go on holiday and leave the account unattended, though he'd always had Colin to do those little things for him when he wasn't available.

'Zaf?'

'Ruth?'

She smiled at his reply. 'Has Malcolm hired a new tech to fill Colin's position?' she asked.

Zaf shook his head. 'No, at least not by the time I'd left. He'd not had a chance to and then after what happened with your replacement…'

'What do you mean? And who replaced me?' Ruth interrupted.

'I need to back up first. The day you left Harry received a call that Catherine had been injured in Beirut. He left that same day and didn't return for nearly a month.'

'But she's okay?' Ruth asked.

'Yeah, he stayed with her until she could fly home. Her boyfriend Fabian was there with her as well and returned to London with Harry and Catherine,' Zaf said.

'Poor Harry. I can't imagine how difficult it would have been for him had she died,' Ruth murmured.

'In a way it worked out for the best. Mace was forced to resign from the JIC but he didn't go quietly. Blake handled the situation as best he could but Mace was still around, trying to stir up trouble. Blake admitted to Adam that he knew that Harry didn't have anything to do with Cotterdam. It's probably good that Harry left the country; it gave Blake time to deal with the fallout.

'Well, a few days after Harry came back, terrorists snuck into the country via a shipping container and our government decided to sell plans for nuclear power plants to the Saudis. One of the Saudi princes who flew to London to finalize the deal was suspected of providing assistance to Al Qaeda. Six sent over a guy named Neil Sternin, a Saudi expert who'd been working on this issue to assist us but it turns out he was working with the Israelis and providing them information. Sternin was after revenge for the death of his Israeli wife several years prior by a suicide bomber in Tel Aviv.'

'That's horrible, but what does this have to do with my replacement?' Ruth asked.

'While Harry was gone, Personnel forced Adam to choose your replacement. He chose Sally Bernard, an analyst from Section A. Neil used her to cover his illegal download of data and then covered his tracks by stabbing her to death in her flat.'

Ruth's jaw dropped in shock and her hands covered her mouth.

'After that we rotated through some of the junior staffers while Harry decided what to do, but when I left for Tehran we still didn't have anyone permanent in the position.' He watched Ruth, who still appeared to be in shock over Sally's fate, as she stood and walked across the small room. 'Did you know Sally?' he asked.

Ruth was standing at the port hole looking out onto the water and didn't answer right away. Wrapping her arms around herself, she turned and looked back at Zaf. 'Yes, I knew her. Not very well, but we'd crossed paths from time to time. I can't believe she was murdered.' She walked back towards the table where Zaf was seated when another look of shock crossed her face.

'If I hadn't left because of Cotterdam, Sally wouldn't have been there, I would have. I would have been the person that Neil murdered!'

Zaf reached out and grabbed her hands in an effort to calm her. 'Ruth, we don't know what would have happened if you were there instead of Sally but it's over and done with and there's nothing we can do to change those events. You need to concentrate on our getting to London safely, okay?' He continued to hold her hands as her breathing evened out and returned to normal.

'What happened to him, to Neil?' Ruth asked.

'He committed suicide. Jo and Malcolm were close to figuring out what he'd done with Sally's computer so he locked himself in one of the interrogation rooms and took cyanide.'

* * *

 _Late Friday afternoon, 12 October_

'Come in,' Harry called to his Section Chief who was impatiently knocking on his door. 'I'm surprised you knocked. You've gotten as bad as… never mind. What do you have?'

'I've heard back from Six, who had word from their agents on the island. Last week, several men in Polis, Cyprus were asking for Zaf. Last anyone saw them was a few days ago. Doesn't appear that they've found him, though,' Adam said.

Harry allowed the surprise to show on his face. 'So Zaf is still alive?' he asked.

'As of quite recently, yes it would appear so.'

'Has Ros arrived there yet?'

Adam shook his head. 'No. She purposely took a few indirect flights to keep a low profile but she should be there this evening. I'll relay this information to her and direct her to one of Six's agents in the area.'

'Get in touch with your Syrian friends and see if they can get you anything else on the Redbacks and their supposed base on the island. We need to give Ros as much information as possible to work with. Get in touch with the RAF at Brize Norton and alert them we may need a medical flight from Cyprus. Apprise them of what we know of Zaf's medical condition.'

'Will do.

After Adam left his office, Harry looked out over the Grid. It was after five in the afternoon so most of the staff had already left. He thought of those who'd been lost in recent years and hoped that by some miracle one that was thought lost could be saved.

* * *

 _Saturday afternoon, 13 October_

Ros sat at the small table outside the café, looking like a proper tourist. Her pale skin and blond hair branded her a non-native and she decided to play the part. She thanked the waiter who brought her a steaming cup of coffee as she looked at a map of Polis. She'd located the newsagent where the asset for Six worked and she planned to stop there next.

Depending on the information she received from him, she also planned to stop at the local hospital and inquire after Zaf. Her cover in searching for him was that he was her boyfriend and hadn't returned from holiday as planned. The thought brought a slight smile to her face, knowing how Zaf would react at the thought of being her boyfriend. She only hoped he had the chance to give her grief about her cover.

An hour later, Ros walked out of the newsagents with some information, primarily about the men who'd been searching for Zaf. There were four men but they hadn't been seen in Polis since Monday. The agent agreed to send her a photo he'd snapped of three of the men, though he admitted it wasn't a great picture, given the distance from which it was taken.

Ros wandered back through the town square and up to the hospital at the base of the hills surrounding the city. The walk from the newsagents to the hospital was nearly a mile but Ros enjoyed the warmth of the shining sun. Twenty minutes later she entered the hospital and approached the information desk, where she was greeted by a young woman.

'Yes, my boyfriend came to Polis recently on holiday and he's not returned nor been in contact and I'm starting to be worried for him. I'm wondering if he may have been a patient here, I have his picture,' she said as she pulled the snapshot from her bag.

Anastasia looked at the photo and shook her head. 'Sorry, but I don't necessarily see the patients, especially if they need help. What is his name? I can see if he was ever registered as a patient here,' she inquired.

'Zafar Younis,' she said before spelling the name. One of the challenges in searching for Zaf was not knowing if he was using his own name, but given how ill he was Ros decided it was likely. 'He arrived in Polis about two weeks ago, so it may have been anytime between then and now,' Ros added. She and Adam had estimated that Zaf and his captors likely didn't arrive before then given what they'd learned of their travels up to that point.

Anastasia shook her head. 'Sorry, I don't have a record of anyone by that name. You can check down at the A E desk; they may recognize him if he was admitted on an emergency basis. Walk down the corridor on your right and the desk is through the second set of doors straight ahead.'

Ros smiled and thanked the young woman for her help before turning towards A E. Within a minute she was standing in front of another young woman, this one apparently named Athena.

'Hi, I was directed to you by the lady at the information desk. I'm trying to find my boyfriend. He came here on holiday last week but he's not been in touch since. Here's his picture,' she said as she handed the photo over. 'His name is Zafar Younis. Do you recognize him?' she asked, trying to sound like a worried girlfriend.

'Oh, he does look familiar. Let me check the computer,' she replied.

'The gal at the front didn't find his name in the computer,' Ros added, trying to be helpful. 'I'm worried that he hit his head and has amnesia or something crazy like that.' Playing the part of a slightly hysterical girlfriend was something Ros had no experience with so she hoped she wasn't too over the top.

'I can't give the names of other patients that fit his description but I can see if someone else remembers him. Cassia!' she called out to a woman walking by the desk. 'Do you remember this guy? He came in last week but his name isn't in the computer. His girlfriend is here trying to find him.'

Cassia walked over to the desk and looked at the photo. 'Yes, I remember him. He was treated by Dr Pavlou. I think his name was Jamal. I remember him because Dr Pavlou's girlfriend knew him and wouldn't leave his side. Dr Pavlou said the guy was a friend of his girlfriend, though now that makes sense,' she said as she nodded her head.

'Why?' asked Ros.

'Because you're English like Dr Pavlou's girlfriend. I never heard Jamal speak; he was unconscious when he was here. It was unusual, he was checked out of the hospital quickly for someone so sick, but he hasn't been back.' She dropped the level of her voice and leaned in closer. 'I also heard that Dr Pavlou's girlfriend has left town. She quit her job here and he's not been happy this past week.'

Ros straightened up in surprise, still trying to understand what she had just heard. She opened her mouth to speak but Cassia spoke first.

'I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply that your boyfriend has run off with another woman. But it is weird, her not turning up for work since this guy left the hospital. And he was in no condition to go anywhere,' she added. At her name being called she turned to leave. 'Sorry, I have to get back to work. Good luck finding your boyfriend,' she added as she walked away.

Ros was confused by what appeared to be another player in the game and Athena tried to still be helpful. 'Not the news you were hoping for, I'm sure,' she said sympathetically.

Ros shook her head. 'No, not really but I hope he's okay. Can you tell me the name of Dr Pavlou's girlfriend, the one who worked here?' she asked. Sensing Athena's hesitation she quickly added, 'I'm not upset with her or anything like that. I just want to find out if he's okay.'

Athena seemed to believe her and smiled in return. 'I have no idea where she lived but I would see her walking to work most days so I believe she lived in town. Her name is Ruth Miller.'

Ros's sharp inhale of breath surprised Athena. 'Do you know her?'

Ros shook her head in reply. 'No, I don't know anyone with that name, though Zafar had a friend named Ruth a few years ago, but he told me that she died. It must be a coincidence, though.' Ros paused for a moment. 'You don't have a picture, do you? Of Ruth? I mean, it can't be the same woman but now I'm curious, I have to say.'

Athena shook her head. 'I don't, but go back to the information desk and ask Anastasia. Ruth used to work up front with her, so she may have a photo. Good luck finding your man,' she added as Ros turned away.

Back at the information desk, Ros waited as Anastasia gave directions to an elderly couple. As they moved away and she approached the desk, the woman remembered Ros.

'Did they recognize your man?' she inquired.

'They did, they were very helpful. It appears that he had a friend here whom he may be staying with while he recovers. A woman named Ruth Miller? Apparently, she was dating Dr Pavlou. You don't happen to have a picture of her, do you?'

'I do, actually, she trained me when I started.' Anastasia glanced around her work area. 'That's funny, I had a picture with a group of us from work here and now it's gone. Oh, there it is. I put my nephew's picture over it on the board,' she said as she unpinned the photos. Hanging her nephew's photo back on the board she walked back to the desk and handed Ros the photo.

'Ruth is the one in the back, next to George, well, Dr Pavlou. They were a cute couple and Ruth is very nice and English, like you,' Anastasia said with a smile.

Ros returned the gesture. 'I'll be very grateful to her if she's helped Zafar recover from whatever injuries he suffered. You don't happen to know where she lived, do you? Even a phone number would be helpful.'

Anastasia shook her head. 'Sorry, I don't know. She walked to work though, except for the days when she came in with Dr Pavlou. He would know where she is.'

Ros nodded in understanding. 'Thank you. Is he working now? I don't want to bother him at work but maybe I could catch him when he's done with his shift,' she explained.

Anastasia checked the computer. 'He is working now but is finished at four, if there are no emergencies of course.'

Ros thanked her once again and left the hospital. She walked for five minutes before finding a small park with a bench upon which she sat, thankful for the shade the nearby tree provided. Pulling out her phone from her pocket she dialed Adam.

'Having any luck?' he asked, skipping the greeting.

'You could say that. Zaf was here and was a patient at the hospital under the name Jamal,' she said. 'I've not had a chance to follow up on a few other leads but you're not going to believe who Zaf is with, or at least was with when he was here.'

'Who, Ros? Who would we know there?' Adam asked.

'Ruth. Zaf was here with Ruth Evershed.'


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:** Again, thank you for the reviews and your kind words.

* * *

 **Chapter Nine**

 _Sunday afternoon, 14 October_

They arrived in Catania mid-afternoon, the drive from Palermo only having taken a few hours, just as Giovanni said. Since it was more than an hour before they were to meet Matteo, they first found the restaurant where they were to meet him and then familiarized themselves with the area. They came across an internet café and they stopped in for a coffee so Ruth could check for a message from Malcolm. If he'd responded and provided them a means of safe contact to the Grid, there would be no need to involve Matteo.

Zaf knew that there was no response from Malcolm when Ruth's shoulders dropped in disappointment. He reached over and grasped her hand, in a show of support, and they quietly finished their coffee before leaving the café. The restaurant was a short direct walk from the café, but with over half an hour to go before they were to meet Matteo, they took a less direct route. They arrived a few minutes early at the restaurant called La Siciliana, along the Viale Marco Polo in Catania. A tall, dark, and very Italian-looking young man stepped out the front door and greeted Zaf enthusiastically. Introductions were made and soon the three were settled at a back table of the restaurant.

'Zaf, is good to see you but you look terrible my friend. At least your taste in women is still excellent,' the young man said with a smile.

'And you, Matteo. I trust that you will not try to steal Emily's affections from me during our visit,' Zaf added with a smile.

Zaf and Ruth had agreed that she would use her Emily Mortimer legend while visiting Matteo, until new passports could be obtained and that they would pose as partners. This way there would be no evidence of Katherine Ruth Miller in Sicily. And although she'd not yet had contact with Malcolm, he knew about the Emily Mortimer legend and could begin searching for it once he saw the messages in the email account. Zaf had suggested the arrangement of them as a couple, feeling it would be less unusual for a couple to be traveling together. Ruth wondered if he'd done that simply to get a reaction from her, but to his apparent surprise she agreed.

Matteo had been a friend and low-level asset of Zaf's from his time at Six. Matteo's father worked at the Italian Embassy in London as an advisor, but since it had been several years since they'd been in touch, he wasn't aware of Zaf's move to Thames House, something they decided to keep to themselves. Considering the entire purpose of this visit was to acquire new passports, the fact that Matteo knew that Zaf worked for Six fit nicely for their cover story.

'Thank you for hosting us on such short notice, Matteo,' she gushed. 'I'm not sure what we'd have done otherwise.' She smiled widely, playing the part of the friendly and thankful girlfriend.

'But of course,' he said. 'I could not pass up the opportunity to see my old friend.' Matteo smiled at them before lifting his menu. 'We will share those stories later. For now, we eat. Anything on the menu is good,' Matteo assured.

* * *

Ros sat on a bench near the staff entrance to the hospital. She'd not had luck catching Dr Pavlou the previous day as he left work but she was hoping to talk with him before he arrived today. She replayed the conversation with Adam in her head, his surprise having matched her own.

 _'_ _Ruth. Zaf_ _was here with Ruth Evershed.'_

 _'_ _Are you serious?' he asked. Ros could tell he was walking around on the Grid before she heard a door close and the background noise was extinguished._

 _'_ _She's going by the name of Ruth Miller but I saw a picture and it's her. Neither she nor Zaf_ _have been seen at the hospital since shortly after his arrival. Caused quite a stir at the hospital given that Ruth is dating one of the doctors.'_

 _An exhale of breath was all Ros heard in reply._

 _'_ _Adam, we can't tell Harry about this, not until we know for certain that Ruth and Zaf_ _are still together,' Ros suggested._

 _'_ _Agreed. But I need to have Malcolm start searching for Ruth Miller and he's still out sick. I'll have to tell Harry soon,' Adam noted._

 _'_ _Go and see Malcolm; he may not be able to be on the Grid but if you tell him we're close to finding Zaf_ _and Ruth and we need his help to bring them home, he will do whatever he can. The more information you have for Harry, the better. And Adam, be honest with me. I know that you and Zaf_ _helped get Ruth out of the country but did you know where she was?'_

 _'_ _No. Well, Zaf_ _arranged for her transport out of the country but he told me it was just a ride to the continent. If there was something planned beyond that he never told me,' Adam admitted._

There was further discussion about other operational details but the conversation quickly came to an end. Ros wondered if she could be as lucky as to find Zaf here in Polis. As for Ruth, some might believe that finding her would be a bonus for Harry but Ros wasn't so sure. She didn't know where the situation surrounding Oliver Mace and the circumstances of Ruth's disappearance stood; whether it would even be safe for Ruth to turn up in London again. Exhaling, Ros reminded herself to take care of one thing at a time and not to get too far ahead of herself.

At the faint sound of footsteps Ros looked down the path to see George Pavlou approach. As he came closer Ros stood and turned to face him before speaking his name.

The man stopped a respectable distance from her. 'Yes? What may I do for you?' he inquired.

'My name is Risa Williams and I'm trying to track down my boyfriend. He was on holiday and came to Polis but was injured. I believe you knew him as Jamal,' she said before offering a picture of Zaf.

George's face showed recognition as he looked at the picture, so Ros continued.

'I understand he had a friend here, a woman named Ruth Miller. I don't want to cause any trouble for her but I just want to know if he's safe. Do you know where he might be? Or Ms Miller? I'm worried about him. Please, can you help me?' The slightly desperate girlfriend routine had worked for her yesterday and Ros hoped that it would play well with the doctor.

Dr Pavlou regarded her for a few moments before giving her a slight nod. 'Yes, I saw this man but I know very little about him and I do not know where he or Ruth is. I will have a break at six this evening; I'll meet you at the café in the square, the one with the blue umbrellas. We can talk then.'

Ros flashed him a relieved smile. 'Thank you. I'll meet you then.'

* * *

Matteo's flat was just down the street from the restaurant where they'd eaten dinner. It was small but neat and included a balcony overlooking the street. The idea that it was to their advantage that they could see the comings and goings of the building reminded Ruth that while she may not work for Five any longer she still thought like she did.

'The bedroom is through that door. I will stay at my girlfriend's place because my settee is not fit for human sleeping,' Matteo announced with a laugh shortly after they walked through the front door.

'Matteo, we can't kick you out of your home. Please, we'll find a hotel,' Zaf protested.

Matteo shook his head. 'No, it's not trouble. Stephania lives nearby but is away on business and I am to check in at her place anyway. You and Emily will stay here, I insist.'

'Thank you for your hospitality. We appreciate it,' Ruth responded with a smile.

They each took a seat in the apartment, with Matteo settling into a chair to allow Zaf and Ruth to sit together on the sofa. Ruth sat close to Zaf and rested her hand on his knee to demonstrate their supposed relationship. Zaf and Matteo did most of the talking, catching up on the years that had passed since they'd last seen one another. Eventually the topic of Zaf's injuries was raised.

'We went on holiday to Cyprus and I was briefly abducted. I've been investigating the theft of Iraqi artifacts that were turning up in London and the men who took me were looking for information. I thought they must have followed me until I heard one of them say that they have someone inside Six who told them I would be there on holiday with Emily. They beat me but I was fortunate enough to escape. They took my backpack, which had our passports. I didn't want to go to the Embassy because of the mole in Six and I was afraid these men would find me again or worse, would hurt Emily. Once I was well enough to travel we took a ship to Palermo and here we are.' Zaf picked up Ruth's hand and kissed her knuckles. 'I'd never forgive myself if something happened to her because of my job,' he added.

Matteo shook his head. 'You have a gift, Zafar, for finding trouble. What are your plans? Surely you both must be needed back to work at some point. What is it that you do, Emily?' he inquired.

'I'm an archivist with the British Museum. It's how we met; he needed to learn about the Iraqi items he was investigating and somehow my name came up,' she said as she smiled at Zaf. 'He started his charm offensive from the moment we met but I assumed he was just a flirt so I didn't take him seriously. It wasn't until I discovered that his original meeting with me was supposed to be his only meeting and yet he'd scheduled four more meetings just to see me that I gave him a chance. We've been together ever since.'

Conversation between the three continued for another hour until Matteo noticed both Zaf and Ruth were yawning. Making sure they knew where everything was, he said his goodbyes and assured them he would be back in the morning.

Once he was gone, they prepared themselves for bed, with Ruth insisting that Zaf take the bed while she would sleep on the settee. Zaf first tried to be chivalrous and insist that he take the settee and when that didn't work he decided they should share the bed. At Ruth's incredulous look, he voiced concern that it wouldn't look right to Matteo if he came back unannounced and found one of them sleeping in separate rooms. He added that they were both exhausted and as adults could be trusted to share the bed and not be inappropriate with one another.

Ruth was initially unconvinced but after a second look at the bed she decided to give in. Zaf may be a flirt but she trusted him completely and knew he wouldn't do anything, at least when it came to sleeping in the same bed.

Once their nightly routines were completed and they'd settled into the bed, ensuring there was as much space as possible between them, they started talking about what they needed to do next.

'Do you really think he can help us get new passports? You haven't seen him for several years; he may not have those connections any longer,' Ruth wondered aloud.

'I know I didn't come across as the most serious of officers but from time to time I checked up on all my assets, even when they were no longer my assets. Matteo moved back to Italy a year before I came to Thames House. Others at Six who knew of him shared rumours that he had connections with the Mafia, as stereotypical as that sounds. He was working for a cousin in a legitimate company, but there was always suspicion about some illegal side deals within the company,' Zaf explained.

'How will you approach the subject? Ruth asked.

'I'd like to talk with him alone; let him think I'm protecting you from the dirtier side of working for Six,' Zaf chuckled before turning serious. 'Do you mind if he and I get coffee together in the morning? Matteo always appreciated the direct approach, so it's probably best if I just ask him if he can help us.'

'I'll go back to the café and check for a message from Malcolm, though honestly I'm not expecting one. We need to decide what we'll do next.' The room was light enough that Ruth could see Zaf nodding his head in agreement.

'Should we consider buying a computer, in case we can't always find a cafe?' Zaf asked.

Ruth thought about her answer before speaking. 'We're trying to travel light and lugging around a laptop might be cumbersome. Let me think about it. I can visit a shop tomorrow and check on the cost. Either way, I'll visit the café while you chat with Matteo about the passports. Hopefully by this time tomorrow we'll have a better idea of what happens next. We should each pick up a burner phone as well.'

'Agreed. And Ruth, thank you for everything.' He reached across and planted a quick kiss on her cheek before rolling away to settle in for sleep.

She wished Zaf a good night and rolled away as well to sleep on her right side. She hoped there would finally be a message from Malcolm in the secure email account, which would mean that Section D could help get Zaf home quickly. As for her, she started to consider where to settle next. Going back to Cyprus was out of the question and while Italy was beautiful, she didn't speak the language and didn't fancy trying to become fluent in another language. Southern France might be a good place to look. The climate was still warm and French was an easy language for her so she could settle easily. Having made that decision, Ruth allowed herself to drift to sleep.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N:** Thank you again for your kind words and reviews. My family and I will be away from home much of this next week so I don't know whether I will have an update next weekend. I certainly hope to, but if I don't, you know why.

* * *

 **Chapter Ten**

 _Sunday evening, 14 October_

Ros sat at a café table sipping a red wine. She'd arrived early to ensure an outdoor seat and played the part of a woman on holiday, or at least as much as one could be when supposedly looking for a wayward boyfriend. Her seat allowed her to observe nearly the entire public square and gave her a clear view of the street from which Dr Pavlou should arrive.

Given what she already knew, Ros was trying to figure out where Zaf and Ruth may have gone if they were no longer in Polis. It sounded like they'd left the area a few days prior and they certainly hadn't turned up at Thames House so she hoped that the good doctor could shed some light on the situation.

A glance across the square alerted her to George's impending arrival. She took the opportunity to observe the man with whom Ruth had apparently been involved. The man was tall and good looking and Ros briefly wondered what it was about Ruth Evershed that attracted these men to her.

'Dr Pavlou, thank you for coming,' she said by way of greeting as he pulled out a chair and sat opposite her.

A server took his order for a black coffee and glass of ice water and they exchanged pleasantries until his drinks were delivered.

'So, you know Ruth Miller and Jamal Davi. Tell me about them,' George asked.

Ros had no idea what story Ruth had given to George so she proceeded with caution and stuck with same story she'd told the women at the hospital. Zafar was her boyfriend and he'd come to Polis on holiday. When he didn't return she came to the island to find him and one place she checked was the hospital, which is when she'd been told he was a patient briefly under the name Jamal.

'Why would he have used a false name?' George asked.

Ros shook her head. 'I've no idea. I don't know anyone by that name and I don't recall Zaf mentioning that name either.'

'How did Jamal, or Zaf, know Ruth?'

It was obvious to Ros that George hadn't liked Zaf all that much though that may have more to do with the fact that Ruth left Polis with Zaf, leaving George behind.

'Zaf told me he once had a friend named Ruth but that she'd died before we met. Other than that he never mentioned her and I never saw a picture of her. Did Ruth say how she knew Zaf?' Ros asked.

'She told me that she left London to escape an abusive partner. When this Jamal turned up, she said that he was a friend who had helped her escape and she wanted to help him return to London. Zaf had been beaten, I'd say tortured, and was quite ill when he arrived here. He had some sort of respiratory infection and he'd had abdominal surgery that was infected. He wouldn't have lasted a lot longer without medical attention.'

George's description fit with what they knew had happened to Zaf as well as what they expected had happened in the meantime.

'How was he, when you last saw him? Was he fit for travel?' she asked.

'He improved quite a bit while he was here. Ruth was concerned for his safety so we snuck him out of hospital in the middle of the night and moved him to her apartment. I stopped by regularly to check on him. His vital signs improved quickly but he needed IV fluids and antibiotics to treat the infection. He was doing better when I saw him over a week ago, but he really shouldn't be travelling.'

'Were they planning to leave the island? Why didn't they simply fly back to London?'

'I asked Ruth those questions myself and she wouldn't answer me. Said she knew I wouldn't understand but that they couldn't just fly to London. I did get the sense they were leaving the island, though.'

Ros sipped her wine and thought for a moment. 'Well, if they didn't fly then they must have left by ship. Does Cyprus have passenger ferry service? Do you know where they sail to?'

'There may be some but they would dock at Limassol. There used to be regular service to Greece and other European ports but that has changed in the past few years.' George sipped his water before continuing. 'Now that you mention it, Ruth arrived in Cyprus on a freighter; she made friends with a freighter captain in Greece and came over on his ship, though I don't know anything else about the ship or the captain.' George glanced at his watch. 'I need to get back to the hospital. I won't lie to you; I'm upset with Ruth for leaving Polis with a guy who literally dropped at her feet in the public square one day but one of the things that attracted me to her was her independence. She swore that there was nothing romantic between her and Jamal and that she felt an obligation to help him get home safely. I just wish she could have told me why he couldn't just fly home. Too late for that now, I guess.' George stood and Ros did the same. 'Good luck finding your boyfriend and I hope he's all right. Give my best to Ruth as well.'

Ros watched him walk away from the café and back towards the hospital. She leaned back in her seat and tried to put herself in Ruth and Zaf's place. Why wouldn't they simply fly back to London, or even anywhere in England for that matter? Ruth must have had false passports to use when Adam and Zaf arranged for her to leave England, so was she still concerned about turning up in the UK, even under a false name? Zaf, she realized, wouldn't have had a passport and Ruth likely didn't have the means to obtain one for him without a visit to the British Embassy. Surely Ruth could have brought Zaf there where he could have made direct contact with the Grid. It would have allowed Ruth to remain hidden, as certainly Zaf wasn't going to blow her cover given that he already knew she wasn't dead.

Ros realized there had to have been a good reason that Ruth and Zaf were unwilling to simply go to the Embassy. Did they sail off the island for who knows where, or was that simply a story for George's benefit? Could they still be in Cyprus and if so, why hadn't they contacted the Grid? Leaving money on the table to cover her and Dr Pavlou's drinks, she headed back to her hotel. She needed to make contact with Adam before she headed to Limassol and tried to find where Ruth and Zaf had gone.

The walk back to her hotel was only 10 minutes at a brisk pace and it took Ros another five minutes to power up her laptop and make the secure connection to the Grid. Before she left the café she'd texted Adam to let him know she would be making contact shortly and thankfully he was on the Grid waiting for her report.

'What did you learn?' Adam asked.

'I met with Ruth's partner, or ex-partner I should say. He's a doctor here in Polis and he treated Zaf when he arrived. His assessment was that Zaf had been tortured; he was also suffering from a respiratory virus and had recently had abdominal surgery, which was infected. Shortly after arriving at hospital Ruth had Zaf moved to her apartment; apparently she was concerned for his safety,' Ros reported.

'Did he say where they were now?'

'He doesn't know. Ruth told him they were leaving but when he asked why Zaf couldn't simply fly back to London, she told him he wouldn't understand. I'm sure Zaf doesn't have a passport; whatever fake papers the Redbacks were using to transport him must still be with them. Not sure why Ruth wouldn't have taken him to the Embassy where he could have called the Grid. If Ruth didn't want to be discovered she could have simply dropped him off. The only other way off the island is by boat so I'm going to Limassol to check on passenger ferries and freighters tomorrow,' she said. 'According to the good doctor, that's how she got here in the first place.'

'There has to be a reason that Zaf wasn't willing to go to the Embassy, and if he's not going to go to the Embassy in Cyprus, he's not likely to go to any others, either. We can probably assume that he and Ruth are working their way back to England, though Zaf will need a passport at some point. There's too many border crossings and checkpoints if they are travelling by land,' Adam hypothesized.

'Unless they are sailing directly back to England, but that may put Ruth at risk. How many passports did she have when she left?'

'Malcolm constructed her legend and put together the documents but I know it was at least two, though given the circumstances I'd guess it was as many as he could do in the short time he had.'

'So if she were to enter the country at a port away from London, she might have success getting Zaf back on British soil but will she be in danger then? Zaf doesn't know that Mace recently went to prison so he assumes Mace's still a threat to Ruth and there are others that would jump at the chance to get Harry out of Five by using Ruth. I don't think she'll stick around Britain if she comes back; she'll get Zaf somewhere safe and then disappear again,' Ros suggested.

Adam concurred with her assessment and informed her he was going to see Malcolm in the morning and bringing a secured laptop, hoping that he was feeling well enough to work on finding Ruth. They agreed that in 24 hours they would need to update Harry and hopefully would have information on where Zaf and Ruth may have sailed as well as Malcolm discovering what he could about her legend of Ruth Miller.

* * *

 _Monday morning, 15 October_

Ruth woke early the next morning and was happy to see that she and Zaf had managed to stay on their respective sides of the bed. She quietly slipped out of bed and grabbing her backpack, she headed for the bathroom to shower and dress for the day. She'd always been an early riser, which served her well during her time on the Grid. Zaf, on the other hand, was prone to late nights and late mornings and would probably be sleeping for a while yet.

Ruth made herself a cup of coffee and thought about what she needed to do today, including another visit to the café where she could check her email for a response from Malcolm. If there still wasn't an answer, she would need to find another way to contact Harry on the Grid. She wished she could just pick up the phone and call him but she had to assume that he was still being watched, which would include his phone being tapped.

'It's pretty early for such deep thoughts,' Zaf said, interrupting the quiet of the apartment.

'Not sure I would consider after nine in the morning to be pretty early,' she noted with a smile.

'It's that late? Sorry, I guess I was more tired than I thought,' Zaf responded as he helped himself to a cup of coffee. He sat down at the small table next to Ruth.

'Are you still planning to visit the café while I have coffee with Matteo?' he asked.

'Yes,' she said. 'Still confident about Matteo being able to get us passports?'

Zaf nodded. 'I'll be surprised if he doesn't have connections to someone who can help us. The frustrating part is that I have so many intelligence contacts from my time at Six, people I used to work with in North Africa that settled in southern Europe because they burned out from what they were doing but didn't want to leave the climate and yet I can't trust anyone right now, apart from you and Adam, Ros, Jo, Malcolm, and Harry. Even for an intelligence officer this feels ridiculous but I can't take that chance,' he said.

Ruth ran a hand up and down his arm. 'Zaf, it's okay. We'll figure this out. Just be glad you were in Cyprus and ran across me. I can't bear to think of what would have happened otherwise.'

Zaf nodded in agreement before taking another sip of coffee. 'Matteo will be here soon, so I need to get dressed. Any ideas on what you'd like your next name to be?' he asked as he walked back to the bedroom.

'I've never had a choice before. Malcolm or Colin always handed me my legends and I was stuck with whatever they came up with.'

'Don't see a reason we can't choose this time. Matteo thinks we're a couple so should our new legends be married?' Zaf asked as he walked back to the kitchen.

The question caught Ruth off guard for a moment. 'I'll say yes on one condition; that you aren't expecting a wedding night.'

Zaf's eyes widened in shock as he took in Ruth's response. 'Man,' he said, 'even in my fake life I can't get anywhere with you.'

Ruth blushed vividly at Zaf's remark, causing his smile to widen even further. Ruth turned her thoughts to names, which prompted a question.

'Will our passports be Italian? Or will they be British?'

Zaf paused a moment, then shrugged. 'I expect they'll be British. Neither of us speak Italian, which is a bit of a red flag if we're traveling with an Italian passport.'

Ruth nodded in agreement. As a kid she'd been obsessed with names, coming up with dozens of possibilities other than her own dreaded name. 'Pippa,' she said, 'was a name I loved when I was young because my favourite primary school teacher was named Pippa. How about you?'

'Sorry Ruth, I didn't spend my time thinking about names,' he replied.

'Fair enough. Did you have a favourite teacher or coach?'

Zaf nodded in response. 'My favourite teacher was a woman, so that doesn't help. Umm, who else... Peter Young was my advisor at university. That's a fairly average name,' he added.

'Do you think Young might be too close to Younis?' Ruth asked.

Zaf rubbed his forehead in thought. 'Good point. Peter could work, though. Who else was there? Ah, Dave Granger was my boss at the student union. How does Peter Granger sound? Do I even look like a Peter Granger?'

Ruth was unsuccessful in holding back a smirk. 'About as much as I look like a Pippa Granger,' she replied. 'And you don't want to use Dave because?'

'David is my second name, so best to avoid that. Peter and Pippa Granger. We'll sound like a proper English couple with those names,' Zaf said with a laugh.

'Good thing it won't be our permanent new names; not sure either of us would be described as proper,' Ruth added with a laugh.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N:** I'm back! Sorry about the break last you again for your reviews. I hope you'll leave another to let me know your thoughts.

* * *

 **Chapter 11**

 _Monday Morning, 15 October_

After speaking with Ros the night before, Adam had made notes of the pertinent details from their conversation. His plan to visit Malcolm was derailed after a phone call to the hospital, whereby the Sister informed him that Malcolm could not have visitors for the next 36 hours due to precautions against further infection. Knowing he couldn't wait that long, he took advantage of Harry's absence from the Grid and set Steven on a task akin to searching for ghosts.

Harry arrived later morning, having come from a briefing with the Home Secretary at Whitehall. The meeting hadn't set him in a good mood and Adam wondered what his bombshell about Ruth being with Zaf would do to said mood.

'Do you have an update from Ros yet?' Harry asked as Adam entered his office, his voice leaving Adam with no doubt that his assessment of Harry's mood was on point.

Adam waited to respond until he was standing in front of Harry's desk. 'I do. Ros called last night with a significant change in circumstances. I'd planned to visit Malcolm this morning to …'

'A significant change in circumstances? Why am I only hearing about this now?'

Harry's bluster didn't ruffle Adam, both because it wasn't in his nature and because he'd worked with Harry long enough to know how to deal with his moods.

'As I was saying, I'd planned to visit Malcolm because he has information that is needed. Ros verified that Zaf was in Polis and was treated at the local hospital there after managing to escape his captors. According to a doctor there, Zaf happened upon a woman he knew who hid him from his captors. A week ago, she and Zaf left the island to travel back to London.' Adam paused, having watched the confusion and disbelief settle on Harry's face.

'Did the doctor give Ros the woman's name? What information does Malcolm have that ties into this?' Harry was growing impatient with what he perceived to be Adam's lack of information.

Adam raised a finger, indicating to Harry that he needed a minute, before he stepped over to the windows. One by one he adjusted the blinds to close Harry's office off from the rest of the Grid before returning to stand in front of Harry's desk.

'The reason I need to speak with Malcolm is that he has information on the woman Zaf is travelling with.' He paused for one last moment before dropping the bombshell. 'Zaf met Ruth in Cyprus, Harry. She's the woman he's travelling with.'

Harry took a step back and sank into his chair as he tried to comprehend the news. Whatever he expected Adam to reveal, it certainly wasn't this.

'I'm going to presume that you've not had any contact with Ruth since she left,' Adam said. 'Zaf arranged her transport out of London and Malcolm provided her with passports. We intentionally didn't share with one another what we'd arranged.'

Harry managed to find his voice. 'But do you think Zaf and Ruth stayed in contact?'

Adam shrugged. 'He and I never discussed Ruth after she left but my gut tells me no, they didn't.'

'Tell me what you know thus far, and why you need to see Malcolm.'

'Ruth was living in Polis and working at the hospital. She and Zaf left Polis a week ago, presumably boarding a freighter. Six's contact in Polis said the Redbacks were asking questions about their whereabouts the next day in Limassol, which is likely where the ship left port. I've already asked Steven to get me a list of the ships leaving from the port last week and their destinations,' Adam summarized as he sat across from Harry's desk.

'What do you think their plan is, Ruth and Zaf? They didn't go to the embassy, which would have been the easiest way to get home,' Harry noted.

'We don't know what the Redbacks told Zaf. Given what we've been able to uncover from other agencies this group appears to be widespread. They likely told Zaf as much, given that he's been held captive for weeks. Even if they aren't as widespread as we think, they would want to Zaf believe it so he would feel they could find him no matter where he went,' Adam speculated.

Harry couldn't fault Adam's logic and nodded in agreement. Before he could respond, his phone beeped with a message. Harry picked it up and for a brief second, a look of surprise settled on his face.

Adam wasn't sure what he'd just seen. 'What was that look for?' he asked.

'It's nothing. Just wasn't expecting a message from that number is all,' Harry said.

'Could it have something to do with Ruth?'

Harry shook his head. 'No, it's a contact of mine. I'll respond later.' He moved his phone to the side of his desk. 'How certain are we that she's left the island with Zaf?,' Harry asked. He opened his mouth to continue but was stopped by a knock on the door. 'Come!'

Steven slid the door in and handed Harry and Adam each a sheet of paper. 'As requested, information about ships leaving Limassol over the past week including their itineraries.' He slid the door closed again after leaving Harry's office.

'Ros mentioned that Ruth arrived in Cyprus via a freighter, but she couldn't find out any information about the ship or the captain. Ruth told a friend a week ago that she was leaving Cyprus,' Adam added.

'Let's start with the ships leaving port starting last Monday and then move forward from there,' Harry stated. 'Once we have some idea where they may have gone, I want you to make arrangements to meet Ros and track down Ruth and Zaf.'

'I will. I'm going to visit Malcolm tomorrow with a secure laptop. Hopefully he's feeling well enough for a bit of work, otherwise I'll get the other names from Ruth's passports. I don't believe he let her leave here without a few of those to use and we may get lucky if she's still using one of those. In the meantime I'm having Steven search for Ruth Miller on Cyprus and in Greece from her time before she arrived in Cyprus. I'll check in with you in a few hours with an update.'

Harry nodded in acknowledgement. 'I'm depending on you and Ros to bring Ruth and Zaf home safely.'

* * *

 _Monday late afternoon_

Ruth and Zaf looked the perfect picture of a couple enjoying a leisurely and romantic stroll along the streets of Catania. They held hands, shared smiles, and Zaf even made sure to kiss Ruth on the cheek once or twice.

Zaf spent much of the morning meeting with Matteo, who assured him that he still had the necessary contacts to have passports created. Ruth visited the internet café where she checked for a message from Malcolm and on her way back to Matteo's she stopped in two different stores and bought a phone in each.

After lunch, Matteo drove them to a nondescript office building and used a key to let himself into what appeared to be a vacant tenant space. In the back through another locked door was a room the size of Matteo's flat with an office in the far corner. Light spilled out under the door, the only evidence that someone could be using the space.

Matteo called out to his friend but he waited just inside the door. The office door opened and a large man stepped out of the office. Matteo introduced him as Guido, though Ruth doubted that was his actual name. No bother, she thought, since her name wasn't really Pippa either. Matteo explained that he and Peter (aka Zaf) used to work together and that the pair needed new British passports. Matteo didn't explain why the passports were needed and Guido didn't ask. Guido took down their details and then Ruth handed over the photos that were taken in a photo booth on the way to the meeting. Matteo slipped Guido a handful of Euros and the two men shook hands while conversing in Italian. Matteo locked the door as they left the office and the trio exited out a different door before taking a roundabout way back to the flat.

Matteo had some work to do so he left Zaf and Ruth on their own. They decided on the walk to give them some privacy to speak about their plans given that Matteo assured them that Guido would have the passports available within a day.

'Still no message from Malcolm,' Ruth said, 'and I don't think we should wait for him any longer. I have another idea of a way to securely contact the Grid.'

'And what might that be?' Zaf inquired, keeping his voice light.

'Before we left Polis I posted a package to an old friend. Honestly, I wasn't sure what would happen to us and if we didn't make it back to London, I wanted…' Ruth's voice trailed off. By speaking her next thoughts she'd be as good as admitting that she loved Harry. The overwhelming feeling of fear that gripped her when she even thought about voicing these feelings was coursing through her body, but now was not the time for fear. 'I sent the package to the man who was section chief before Adam. His name is Tom and Harry decommissioned him when he cracked under the pressure. I know we're not supposed to still have contact with officers once they leave the service, and I haven't had contact with Tom but I've kept tabs on him. He got married and his wife was the CIA liaison to Five here in London; it's how they met.'

'So what did you send him?' Zaf asked.

Ruth smiled. 'A book, Metamorphoses by Ovid. Harry gave it to me for my birthday last year. It's an old edition so it has some monetary value but more than that it has sentimental value for me.' Ruth drew a deep and shaky breath and Zaf squeezed her hand in support. 'I included a coded message on a piece of paper tucked into the book. There's a personal message as well as instructions on how to access Malcolm's email account.'

'So you trust Tom? What does he do now?' Zaf asked.

'He and Christine own a private security company. I know that Tom and Harry have kept in touch; Harry admitted it to me. He and Tom make a game of it to see if the Service catches on to their meetings. Tom will understand the message I included for him and he'll have a way to get it to Harry quickly. The package was sent to a friend from my time at GCHQ. A few months after I started at Five, Tom pulled me aside and suggested that I make arrangements with a trusted friend to serve as a go between for messages or packages. I arranged with her to be able to send items and she will forward them on. In this case I sent her an email that looks like spam but it's an advert for Tom's business. She'll drop the package off at their offices in Birmingham,' she explained.

'And Tom will know this is from you?' Zaf asked.

Ruth nodded in response. 'He'll recognize the code and Harry will certainly recognize the book.'

Zaf nodded as well. 'Assuming everything goes to plan, where should we go next?'

'Depends on how confident we are about the passports. Do you feel brave enough to try and board a flight?' Ruth asked.

'Maybe we should try our passports at a land crossing first, which leaves us France, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovakia. Do you have a preference?'

'France would be my first choice, because it's the more direct path and I'm fluent,' Ruth noted.

'It's also large enough to give us multiple routes, depending upon our next mode of travel,' Zaf added. He dropped Ruth's hand to cover a yawn. 'Sorry, but I'm knackered. Can we head back to Matteo's place?'

'Of course. We'll grab some take away on the way back and have dinner in,' Ruth suggested.

* * *

 _Tuesday early afternoon, 16 October_

Adam stuck his head through the open door of Harry's office. 'I've called St. Thomas's and confirmed that Malcolm can have visitors so I'm going over. With a bit of luck and the information Steven has already found we'll have a better idea of where Zaf and Ruth have gone.'

'Give Malcolm my best. I'm on my way to meet a contact who was rather insistent we meet.'

'Anything to be worried about?'

Harry shook his head. 'No, nothing like that, just that our meetings lean more towards the social. Whatever it is, he's traveling down a good distance to deliver a message.'

They stopped at Jo's desk to give her an update as to where they were each headed before leaving the building.

Once outside, Adam headed towards the tube stop while Harry flagged down a taxi. He asked the driver to drop him at Christchurch Gardens and from there he walked 10 minutes back towards Thames House to a small Italian restaurant hidden on a side street. He entered and approached the host stand, inquiring if Matthew Archer had arrived. The host showed him to a table at the back of the restaurant, where Tom Quinn was already seated. He stood as Harry approached.

'Matthew, good to see you,' Harry said, for the benefit of the host who was still nearby.

'Same to you, Giles. It's been too long,' Tom added.

The first few minutes were spent in idle chit chat as the waiter approached to take their drink orders. Their meeting was late enough that most of the lunch crowd had dispersed, leaving them on their own.

Tom reached into a messenger bag that was slung over the back of his chair and pulled out a large padded envelope, which he handed to Harry.

'What's this?'

'This is the reason we needed to meet. This is for you,' he responded.

'What is it?'

'Have you been in touch with Ruth recently?'

Whatever Harry expected him to say, it wasn't that. Tom was aware of the basic story surrounding the Cotterdam incident that pushed Ruth into exile but there'd been no further discussion.

Harry was quiet for a moment as he considered how to respond but ultimately chose to proceed cautiously with the truth.

'No, I've had no contact with her since Cotterdam. Why do you ask?'

Tom handed him the larger envelope. He could feel a book or something similar inside, though it was somewhat concealed by padding. Examining the envelope more closely, Harry noted its condition.

'How do you know this is for me? There's no name anywhere and it's still sealed.' He set the parcel down on the table.

Tom was certain the mention of Ruth would grab Harry's attention so the lack of response was worrying.

'This envelope was delivered to me by a woman who works at GCHQ, one who used to work with Ruth. She received a package from Ruth along with separate instructions via email to deliver it to me. I opened the package and inside was this envelope and a coded message that told me to deliver this to you.'

'But how do you …'

Tom explained that he encouraged Ruth to set up the communication channel not long after she began on the Grid. He knew that it was suggested for all field officers but felt that it would be a good idea for everyone, so he'd encouraged other staff, including Sam and Ruth, to do the same.

Harry paused for a moment before he picked up the envelope once again. His intent to examine was interrupted by the waiter delivering their drinks, so he set the envelope on his lap and spread the napkin over the top.

'Did her message say anything else?' Harry asked, once they were alone.

Tom shook his head. 'Just that it needed to get to you quickly.' He sipped his tea before asking the unanswerable question. 'Can you tell me what's going on with Ruth?'

Harry gave him a wry smile. 'We both know that's not going to happen, but hopefully in the near future we can meet again and swap tales.' Harry picked up his phone and pressed a button. 'Just to be clear, you have no way to contact Ruth?'

Tom nodded his affirmation.

'I'm sorry to cut this short but I need to get back to the office.' Grasping the envelope as he stood, he dropped the napkin onto his plate and tucked the envelope under his arm. A wallet was produced from his pocket and he soon dropped a few crisp notes on the table. 'Thank you for the delivery,' he added before moving towards the door.

Tom watched Harry move confidently through the restaurant before turning his attention back to the empty seat across from him. A moment later the waiter arrived to take his lunch order, surprised to find the man sitting alone.

Harry's driver was waiting as he stepped out of the restaurant, allowing him to slide into the back seat of the car without a pause in his stride. His fingers drummed silently against the envelope, the desire to rip open the envelope strong, but he opted for slow, deep breaths to keep himself relaxed. Not until he was in the sanctuary that was his office would he allow himself to open the envelope that could change his life. Again.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:** Thank you for your reviews and my thanks to r4ven3 for her critical eye and for keeping this story out of the land of farfetchedness.

* * *

 **Chapter 12**

 _Tuesday afternoon, 16 October_

A laptop and other necessary equipment was packed into the backpack slung over Adam's shoulder as he walked in St. Thomas Hospital. Malcolm was in a room on the tenth floor, the view overlooking Archbishop's Park, located right across the street. Malcolm greeted him with a smile as he entered the room.

'Hello, thought you might like a spot of company,' he said as he pulled up a chair on the left side of the bed.

Malcolm pushed himself upright. 'Good to see a friendly face,' he said, his voice hoarse from illness. 'How are things on the Grid?'

Adam smiled. 'I've got some good news and a question for you, but first, how are you feeling? I tried to visit earlier but the sister wouldn't let me in.'

'I'm still tired and this place is rather dull. My mother came to visit Sunday after church but I was feeling quite poorly. Sounds as though I may be discharged in the next day or so, though I've been told I'll need to stay at home and rest for another week before I should go back to work,' he said. 'What's the good news?'

Adam smiled. 'We're close to finding Zaf,' he said and watched Malcolm's eyes quickly widen.

'That's wonderful but how? And how is he?' Malcolm asked.

'He was quite poorly, which is what helped us to track him but the Redbacks took him to Cyprus where it appears he got away from his captors and ended up in hospital,' Adam explained.

'Is he still there?' Malcolm inquired, somewhat confused.

Adam shook his head. 'No, he was removed from hospital for his protection by none other than Ruth Evershed.'

Malcolm's jaw dropped. 'Ruth! Did Zaf know where she was?'

Adam shook his head again. 'I believe it's a coincidence. Ruth was living on the island and working at the local hospital. She took Zaf to her place not long after he arrived and then they disappeared. She told a friend, a doctor at the hospital that cared for Zaf, that she was helping him get home to London but she wouldn't tell him why they couldn't fly back to London. It appears they left via a freighter a week ago. And that's what brings me here.' Adam explained. 'I need to know what names were on the passports you created for Ruth when she left. I took a chance that you would be feeling restless being stuck here and I brought a secure laptop and some equipment. I thought you might be able to cure your boredom and help us search for Ruth at the same time.'

Malcolm looked positively thrilled at the request. 'I'd be delighted.'

At the favourable response, Adam unzipped the bag and pulled out the laptop and other equipment. Under Malcolm's direction, he plugged in various cords and pulled a rolling table over onto which the laptop and other equipment was placed.

As he waited for the laptop to boot, he filled Adam in on some details. 'I created two passports for Ruth plus I gave her a third one that had been prepared for her but never used. Helen James, Katherine Miller, and Emily Mortimer were her legends.'

'Ros is in Cyprus and talked to the doctor who treated Zaf. He said that Ruth's name was Ruth Miller,' Adam said.

Malcolm nodded. 'Ruth was her middle name on the Katherine Miller legend. Helen was the legend she'd not yet used and Emily was the other legend I created for her. I have the details of the legends hidden in a few files so I could still access them if needed but the files weren't connected to Ruth in any way. I'll begin searching for those names. Do we have any other details?'

Adam passed over a few sheets of paper. 'Here's Ruth's approximate arrival date on Cyprus. We also know that she arrived via freighter from Greece but we don't know the name of the ship or its captain. The second page is the list of freighters sailing out of the port at Limassol around the day when Ruth and Zaf appear to have left,' Adam explained. 'Steven compiled the information and what little he could find with just the name Katherine Ruth Miller, which wasn't much.'

Malcolm's fingers moved quickly over the keys. 'I'm pulling the data on Ruth's legends and then I'll set up the preliminary searches. Why didn't she just take Zaf to the Embassy? Surely they could have verified his identity and gotten him home?'

'Harry and I discussed that. Our best guess is that Zaf is avoiding intelligence officers; we have information from contacts in Southern Europe that the Redbacks are suspected to have infiltrated several organizations. Given what we know about what they do to the officers they take, no doubt Zaf doesn't want to risk being captured,' Adam explained.

Malcolm's fingers continued to move at a rapid pace. 'It's a frightening prospect, certainly.' He took a deep breath and rested his head against the pillow behind him. 'I'll get the searches up and running shortly and will call you when I know something. If you discover any new information, please let me know,' Malcolm added.

Adam nodded his assent. 'I'll check in with you in before it's lights out around here. Glad to hear you're doing well and will be home soon. Take care, Malcolm,' Adam said before rising from the chair and heading back to the Grid.

* * *

Adam was surprised to see Harry back in his office when he returned to the Grid. As he approached, he realized Harry was staring at his desk and he wondered if that meant bad news. He slid the door open just wide enough to move his shoulder and head through the opening.

'Can you talk?'

A brief nod was all the indication Adam received. The door was returned to its closed position and something told Adam to flip the lock. He settled himself in a chair opposite Harry but waited for him to initiate the conversation.

'My contact is Tom Quinn; I met him for a drink and he gave me this.' Harry indicated a large envelope atop his desk. 'He says it's from Ruth.'

Adam blinked as though he'd not heard Harry correctly. 'Ruth sent Tom Quinn that envelope.'

Harry nodded, then shared what Tom had told him about the system Ruth set up.

'You had security scan it when you returned from your meeting,' Adam noted, assuming Harry would do as much, even if protocol didn't dictate so and Harry again nodded. 'Why haven't you opened it?

Harry opened his mouth to speak but there were no words. Instead, he ripped the top of the envelope away and tipped the bottom up, allowing the contents to slide out and into his hand. In that instant Harry knew the package was from Ruth. Setting aside the now-empty envelope, he picked up the familiar book and opened the front cover. Inside was the inscription, written years before by a previous owner, which said, 'Fortune and love favour the brave. Ovid.' Harry had chosen this copy for Ruth in part because of inscription and because she'd made a comment one night about her desire to read Ovid.

'I gave Ruth this book for her birthday a few months before she left. She sent this so I would know it was from her.' With that, Harry fanned the pages and on page 147, found what felt like the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. It was a small piece of lined paper, with what appeared to be a shopping list. The sight of Ruth's messy handwriting made Harry smile.

'A message from Ruth?' Adam inquired unnecessarily.

'Yes, but we're going to need Malcolm's help again. It looks like a shopping list made by someone with poor spelling,' Harry noted before turning the page over but finding nothing else. He handed it to Adam to examine.

'Clever. To anyone else it's simply a scrap of paper grabbed in haste for use as a bookmark. I'll scan this and get it over to Malcolm but he may also need the book. I presume you'd like this returned to you?'

Harry nodded. 'If he doesn't need the book I'll examine it more closely tonight to see if there are any other messages within the text itself. Hopefully the bookmark will help us pinpoint Ruth and Zaf's location.'

Adam left Harry alone with the book and for the first time since this drama all began, Harry felt hope that there were still chapters to write in his story with Ruth.

* * *

 _Wednesday morning, 17 October_

Harry and Adam projected a calm façade as they strolled through St. Thomas Hospital. It was unlikely that anyone would guess that their visit was preceded by an urgent message from a patient on the 10th Floor.

As they stepped off the lift, Adam directed Harry to Malcolm's room. 'He's in the William Gull Ward, just through here.' Seconds later, Adam knocked on Malcolm's door to announce their arrival.

'Come in,' Malcolm said, though his voice was still hoarse. 'That was quick,' he added with a slight smile.

'What do you have for us?' Harry asked, hoping for good news.

'Information,' he said as Adam and Harry settled themselves in chairs. 'Based on the estimated date of Ruth's arrival on Cyprus and when she and Zaf appear to have left, there were two freighters that were in Limassol port at both times. The Speranza and the Arno.'

'And where are these ships now?' Harry asked.

'The Speranza arrived in Palermo, Sicily on Sunday morning while the Arno is still at sea. It's on its way to Portsmouth.'

Harry and Adam perkd up at the news.

'Based solely on dates, it's more likely Ruth arrived on the Speranza. However, given that Zaf likely doesn't have a passport, the Arno would get them directly back to England,' Malcolm added.

'When is the Arno due into port?' Adam asked.

Malcolm checked his notes. 'Not for another week, at least. She's larger than the Speranza and sails faster, but it's still a long journey.'

'And when does the Speranza leave port?'

Harry stood and paced in the small space, thinking of how to proceed while Adam and Malcolm talked through the details.

'She leaves port tomorrow morning,' Malcolm confirmed.

Harry stopped pacing, planting himself at the foot of Malcolm's bed.

'Adam, contact Ros. Have her go to Palermo and talk to the captain; see if Ruth and Zaf were on board. In the meantime Malcolm, can you see if it's possible to email the captain of the Arno and see if...' He stopped speaking as Malcolm broke into a flurry of activity.

'I can't believe I didn't remember,' Malcolm muttered as his fingers flew across the keyboard. Harry and Adam exchanged a look and wisely decided to give their friend a moment to finish his task.

Malcolm took a deep breath as he appeared to be waiting for something to happen. 'I'd completely forgotten but I set up an email account before Ruth left. I gave her the password so she had a way of contacting me, though it would also allow me to get a message to her. I haven't checked it since the beginning of the month.' His voice trailed off as he clicked around the site.

'Ruth could have sent you an email all this time?' Harry asked in disbelief.

'Technically yes, but that's not what we agreed on. If one of us needed to send a message, we would draft an email and save it, but not send it. It will simply sit in the drafts folder and whomever logs in to the account can view the draft.' Malcolm made one final click.

'She's left a message,' he said as he skimmed through the draft. 'They're in Italy, most recently in Catania, Sicily,' he announced with a smile.

Harry allowed the surprise to show on his face momentarily. 'Malcolm, respond to Ruth and give her a secure way to contact me. Adam, have Ros meet you in Sicily. Let's bring them home.'


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N:** Thank you for the reviews. My apologies that this is a shorter chapter. Thanks again to R4ven3 for her help. Wolfdrum, I hope you are having a better day.

* * *

 **Chapter 13**

 _Thursday morning, 18 October_

Ruth sat on the balcony of the hotel room, enjoying a fresh cup of coffee as she watched the city of Rome wake up around her. Zaf was still asleep, something that worried Ruth more each day.

On Tuesday, Matteo delivered the new passports just after lunch. After expressing their appreciation to Matteo for his help, Zaf and Ruth said goodbye. The decision to leave once they had their passports in hand had already been made as they didn't want to stay in one place too long. They'd driven to Messina, dropped off the hired car, and then took the ferry to Villa San Giovanni. There was debate about whether to hire another car and start driving or spend the night and take the early train to Rome. The desire to keep moving won out and soon they were moving north along the E45, which was really their only option until they reached Naples, given the hilly terrain.

Zaf had offered to drive but after just a few hours Ruth took the wheel. They'd stopped along the way when Ruth felt herself nodding off. They were back on the road by Wednesday mid-morning with Ruth back behind the wheel and they arrived in Rome late-afternoon. Ruth immediately found a hotel room so Zaf could sleep, though he'd slept for most of the drive between Naples and Rome. The nagging feeling that Ruth had been experiencing the past few days was now her primary concern. While she knew that he was not fully physically healed from his experience with the Redbacks, she suspected that the antibiotics he'd had in Polis hadn't quite been enough to heal him. Zaf's appetite was also lacking and his exhaustion worsened.

There was no hiding the fact that Zaf was not well. He continued to try and play it as though he'd picked up a bug somewhere along their travels, but Ruth knew it was the lingering effects of the virus and gunshot wound. He had missed out on several days of antibiotic treatment and it was catching up to him. Ruth started running different scenarios through her mind, trying to work out how they could stay ahead of the men hunting them while getting Zaf the care he needed, given his insistence that she not contact the embassy or consulate.

* * *

 _Thursday morning_

Jo couldn't get Ros to Sicily before the ship left port so Adam took the first available flight to Palermo in an effort to speak with the captain of the Speranza. It took all his charm and persuasiveness to get a meeting with the captain, but the effort paid off. Giovanni Mancini spared a few minutes to speak with Adam and after showing photos and trying to explain who he was, Giovanni admitted that Katherine and Jamal sailed with him from Cyprus to Palermo. He informed Adam that they had disembarked on Sunday and that they had planned to drive to the other side of the island, to meet a friend of Jamal's. He noted that their intent was to travel back to London but otherwise he had no information.

Adam thanked Giovanni for his time. After leaving the shipyard, he hailed a taxi to the train station and after purchasing a ticket to Catania, he found a quiet corner in which he could check in with the Grid. He shared what he learned from Giovanni with Harry and asked him to get in touch with Six to see if they had records on any of Zaf's contacts in Sicily. Disconnecting the call, he boarded the train to meet Ros in Catania.

Jo did the best she could but as there were no direct flights from Cyprus to Sicily, Ros had to change planes in Athens. She was anxious to get to Italy and connect with Adam. Ros had remained steadfast in her insistence that the Grid do everything they could to find Zaf and bring him home. Between having to wait for her flight and being this close to finding him, Ros found her patience wearing thin.

* * *

 _Thursday afternoon_

After a few discreet inquiries, Ruth found a free clinic in a poor area of Rome. Her hope was that he could be prescribed some oral antibiotics that would keep him well enough for the week it could take them to get back to Britain. The neighborhood around the clinic was filled with immigrants so the lack of identity papers was not unusual. Ruth had also decided that they would use their new passports, hoping that posing as a married couple would raise less questions.

When Ruth raised the issue of going to the clinic, Zaf was initially opposed. Ruth knew he was more worried for her safety than his own but she unleashed her inner stubborn mule and eventually convinced him that it was necessary. The trip to the clinic was tiring for Zaf and he was quickly taken back for an examination. Ruth gave the nurse and then the doctor a modified version of the truth and then they waited for test results. As they sat together in the exam room, Ruth tried to stay positive, still hoping that Zaf could be prescribed antibiotics that would allow them to continue their journey, but Zaf admitted that he wasn't sure he could travel far in his condition. Ruth reached for Zaf's hand and held it in a show of support.

'I've already seen the results of one test that confirms your illness,' Ruth noted quietly.

Zaf frowned, not understanding her meaning.

'The doctor is a beautiful woman and you didn't even try and flirt with her. Proof positive if you ask me,' she said.

Zaf smiled weakly. 'You did tell her we are partners. The least I can do is try to be appropriate.'

They were still holding hands 20 minutes later when the doctor returned. The news was not what either had hoped. Zaf's white blood cell count was too high to be treated with regular antibiotics and the doctor had arranged for him to be transported to a nearby hospital, Policlinico Tor Vergata, for care. She also informed Zaf that because the infection was a recurrence of his previous infection, he would need to stay in hospital until his white blood cell count was back to normal, which would likely take a few days. The doctor then left the room to finalize Zaf's transport details.

Ruth could see that Zaf was on edge about the news but she squeezed his hand once again.

'Zaf, we'll be all right. I'll make arrangements for us to move on as soon as you are released. With some real sleep, rest, and medicine, you'll be fine and it won't take as long as they think and then we'll get out of Italy. We'll move north to either France or Switzerland.'

Zaf shook his head. 'Ruth, you have to promise me that if you catch sight of those men, you'll leave. I'll be safe enough at the hospital.'

Ruth shook her head but before she could respond the door opened and Zaf was moved into an ambulance along with Ruth. The journey to the hospital was brief and within an hour Zaf was settled into a bed in a semi-private room, though currently the other bed was empty. Ruth had already been informed that she wouldn't be able to stay at Zaf's bedside overnight, so she left the hospital to make travel plans. After dinner she returned to the hospital to visit, bringing an English-language magazine to help him pass the time. She updated him on their future travel arrangements and then just before 8 pm, she said goodnight.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N:** Happy Birthday to my beta extraordinaire, r4ven3. Thank you for your input.

* * *

 **Chapter 14**

 _Thursday evening, Catania_

Ros walked into her hotel room and deposited her luggage on the bed, then opened the door to the adjoining room. Adam was on his phone and looking at a laptop.

'Ros just arrived. I'll update her on what you've found and we'll let you know how we plan to proceed from here,' he said before disconnecting the call.

'Do we know where they are?' She asked directly.

'Ruth hired a car on Tuesday afternoon under the legend of Emily Mortimer. The agency doesn't have a way of tracking the car so unless it's turned in we won't know for certain where they've gone. Presumably they are headed north but given that it's been two days since they started driving, the search area is vast,' Adam said.

'Has Emily Mortimer passed through border control to leave the country?' Ross asked.

Adam shook his head. 'No, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything. If they've been able to obtain passports then they are likely rotating through them to make it difficult for anyone to track their location.'

'And there's been no activity on any of Ruth's other known legends?'

Adam shook his head again. 'Malcolm, who's checked himself out of hospital, has several ongoing searches. Harry said he's planning to try using photos of Ruth and Zaf to see if any likenesses come up from border control, police services, etc. We'll check in with the Grid in the morning for an update.'

Ros, who had been pacing since she arrived, dropped into the nearest chair. 'So that's it?'

Adam shrugged. 'For now. I don't like sitting around anymore than you. It's late. When did you last eat?'

It was Ros' turn to shrug her shoulders.

'Let's find something to eat. In the morning, Malcolm will have something for us and we'll be moving closer to Zaf and Ruth. But for now, it's late and we're tired. Let's go,' he said as he stood and walked to the door. Ros stood as well and followed him out of the room.

* * *

 _Friday morning_

Ruth spent the morning at the hospital with Zaf. His color was looking better but he still tired easily and Ruth knew that he wasn't yet well enough to leave and continue their journey home. They were careful in their conversation, never knowing who might be listening outside the door. They masked their conversation as though they were a couple on a trip across the continent.

'I really think I'm well enough to travel,' Zaf remarked, earning him a pointed look from Ruth.

'You will finish your course of antibiotics and we'll not leave a moment earlier,' she responded, earning her a smirk from Zaf.

'Whatever you say, dear.' He waited for Ruth to smile in acknowledgement of his joke, but it never came. 'What's wrong?'

Ruth pulled her chair closer to Zaf's bedside. 'I can't shake this feeling that the Redbacks are going to turn up at any moment.'

Zaf reached out his hand to Ruth, who grasped it in her own. 'Are you going back to London?'

Ruth's head jerked up at the question. 'What do you mean?'

'Are you planning to travel with me to London? Or were you going to get me close and then disappear into the wind again?'

Ruth struggled to get her words out and Zaf could see she was angry.

'Hey, you don't have to defend your actions to me, I know exactly why you did what you did. But I don't want you to put yourself at risk by returning to London simply to get me home.' He paused to give her a moment to think about what he'd said. 'Be honest, were you planning to return to England for good or just to see me home safe and then leave and start over again somewhere new?'

Ruth shook her head. 'Zaf, I'm dead in England. I can't stay there. I will see you back to London but then I need to leave again. I'm not sure where I'll go, but I've done it before and I'll do it again.'

'It doesn't have to be that way. I'm sure Harry -'

'No. I'm not going to see Harry. It was hard enough to leave the first time. Once I know you're safe, I'll slip back into the crowd. Zaf, it's okay. I made my choice with Cotterdam and I'm sticking with it. Section D needs to stand on that wall and keep the country in check. Harry needs to be there and that's more important than he and I and what might have been.'

Zaf nodded, not wanting to prolong the discussion, then yawned. 'So, back to travel plans.'

Ruth stood. 'I should let you sleep. I'm going back to the hotel and look at travel options. I'll return in a few hours and we'll talk then.' She squeezed his hand and gave him a smile before walking out of the room.

Ruth took a circuitous route back to their hotel room. She'd made arrangements for a late check out and planned to move to a place closer to the hospital. As she travelled, she thought about where they should go next and whether the Redbacks had any idea where they were. She hadn't seen the men from Cyprus since they left Limassol, but Ruth knew they likely had a wide network of agents and that anyone around her could be just waiting for the right time to grab her and Zaf.

She passed a travel agency and on impulse, stopped in and booked two tickets for Peter and Pippa Granger to Manchester, for three days from now. It was very likely they wouldn't use them, but it would be there as an option. In order to throw others off their trail, she decided to find a different travel agency and book tickets in the name of Zafar Younis and Katherine Miller to London from someplace well away from Italy, just to throw off anyone who was looking for them.

* * *

 _Midday Friday_

Heads turned when a computer in the tech suite began loudly beeping. The sound brought Malcolm running from the kitchen where he'd been making tea. A chair was quickly commandeered to enable him to quickly access the computer's search.

'Harry!' he shouted, before realizing that Harry's door was shut. 'Jo, get Harry, now,' he hollered and the young woman did as he asked.

'What have you got?' Harry asked as soon as he walked through the door.

'Tickets in Zaf's name and Ruth's Cyprus legend were just booked for a flight from Lisbon to London for Saturday evening,' Malcolm reported.

'Portugal? I thought they were in Sicily?' Harry asked, thoroughly confused.

'Get Adam and Ros on the phone,' Harry asked Jo while Malcolm continued to work with the computer.

Adam and Ros were just as confused but after a few minutes of debate, they had their orders from Harry and they prepared to leave Italy.

* * *

Ruth spent Friday afternoon and evening with Zaf before returning to the new hotel. The neighborhood wasn't great but it was close to the hospital. She was hopeful that the doctor could give them an idea of how much longer it will be before Zaf can be discharged. She tried not to get her hopes up just because he looked better.

On Saturday morning, Ruth was waiting for the lift just inside the main entrance when the door slid open to reveal Zaf's doctor.

'Ciao. You are Zafar's partner, yes?' the doctor asked.

'Yes, I'm Ruth. How is he doing today?' she inquired, hopeful that the doctor would have news about Zaf's release.

'Zafar is improving but he must stay here for another day. I was just telling Zafar and his friends the news.'

Ruth blanched at the mention of friends and grasped the doctor's arm. 'Friends? What do you mean? We don't know anyone here.' She turned and jabbed at the call button for the lift, which was still on the ground floor.

'No, no,' Ruth repeated as the she waited for the door to close. She thought back over their travels and wondered how the Redbacks could have found her and Zaf. Her mind raced with what she should do next; whether she should alert security or if she could bluff her way into separating Zaf from the men. Did they want to abduct him or would they just kill him here in hospital? Did they know that she used to be a part of Five? If so they would likely take her, so how could she avoid capture and keep Zaf safe?

With no good answers the lift doors opened and Ruth stepped into the nearly vacant corridor. She turned right and cautiously approached the end, where the corridor branched both left and right. Thankfully Zaf's room was on the opposite side, which allowed Ruth to remain somewhat concealed yet see into the room. The door to a patient room behind Ruth opened and a patient was wheeled out on a gurney. The noise from that activity meant that she couldn't hear any voices from Zaf's room. She could see the right side of one man but not his head. Strangely, there was something similar about him but Ruth's mind was so focused on escape strategies that it didn't register with her who the man was until he turned around at the noise happening behind Ruth. Her hands flew to her mouth in shock.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N:** My apologies for the delay. I had the chapter written, and r4ven3 had given it the once over and as I read through it one last time, I decided that I'd glossed over some scenes and information that should be included, thus the delay. We are getting close to the end, but I expect there are still a couple more chapters. Thank you for reading and your kind words of review.

* * *

 **Chapter 15**

 _Late Friday afternoon_

Harry was concerned that Malcolm was going to land himself back in hospital so after Adam and Ros were given new orders he gave Malcolm one of his own, to bunk down for a rest in one of the med rooms. Malcolm's protest was half-hearted but Harry could clearly see that his friend was exhausted. Jo volunteered to watch over the computers still running searches for Ruth and Zaf while Malcolm rested as Steven had been recalled to Section A.

Harry retreated to his office to tackle a stack of paperwork and was making good progress when Jo knocked on his door. He waved her in but kept reading the report in front of him.

Jo waited for Harry to look up at her before she spoke; experience had taught her that to do otherwise wasn't a wise course of action.

'Yes?'

'One of the searches was a facial recognition search that returned a hit on Zaf,' she explained.

Harry pushed himself back from his desk. 'Show me,' he stated and then followed Jo to the Tech Suite.

She sat in the chair next to Malcolm's. 'Colin's,' Harry thought to himself as Jo logged in to the terminal. After a few clicks, a photo of Zaf appeared on screen. His cheekbones were more pronounced than the last time either of them saw him.

'It's a recent photo,' Jo remarked. 'He's lost weight,' she added unnecessarily.

Harry concurred with Jo's assessment. 'What is this picture from?'

Another click and Jo started reading from the screen.

'This is a passport photo for one Peter Granger. An alert was recently issued by Polizia di Stato for his arrest on forgery charges. He's traveling on a British passport and a warrant was also issued for his wife, Pippa.' Jo clicked a link and Ruth's photo replaced Zaf's on the screen.

'Start a search for the new names. I'm going to wake Malcolm,' Harry said as he left the room.

Jo set up the search for the new names but as she didn't speak Italian she hoped she'd selected the correct databases to search. She minimized the new search and opened the photos of Zaf and Ruth again. Jo had been witness to a number of unbelievable events since she'd started with Section D, but Adam telling her that Zaf and Ruth were traveling together was certainly something she never expected. She'd already mourned the loss of Ruth from her life, but Jo had managed to hold on to the hope that Ruth had found a new life that could bring her the happiness she'd been denied in London. As for Zaf, Jo truly feared that he was dead, the next in an ever-growing list of coworkers. She'd mourned them all – Fiona, Colin, even Sally – but Zaf was different. He was more than just a fellow officer. He was her roommate and sounding board and they'd been on the cusp of something more when he left for Iran. He'd joked about how she would miss him and she said the only thing she'd miss was the peace and quiet when he returned home. They both laughed, each knowing there was truth in their statements.

These past weeks, Jo had come to hate the peace and quiet. The radio or the telly was always on to fill the silence of Zaf's absence. Malcolm regularly asked her how she was feeling and while she appreciated the thought behind the gesture, Jo knew they all felt the loss of Zaf. The flicker of hope that flared earlier this week was getting stronger.

Jo heard Malcolm and Harry's approach before they entered the tech suite so she minimized the photos and pulled up the current search for Peter and Pippa Granger.

As Malcolm took his seat, Jo summarized the search while Harry watched from behind. Malcolm made some tweaks but complimented Jo on the set up. Speculation ensued about why Zaf and Ruth, or more accurately, Peter and Pippa, were wanted in connection with forgery but the primary concern was that the Redbacks were using the Italian State Police to find the couple.

'What time is Ros and Adam's flight to Lisbon?'

Jo pulled up their travel details. 'Thirty minutes ago.'

* * *

 _Saturday morning_

Ruth was convinced that she was hallucinating at the sight of Adam standing in Zaf's room. In three quick steps Adam was standing in front of her, wrapping her in a hug.

'Ruth, it's okay. You and Zaf are safe,' he said as held her. 'Come in the room. We can talk there,' he added as he released her from his embrace. With a hand on her back he guided her forward. It was then that Ruth saw that Ros was also in Zaf's room.

'Hello, Ros.' Ruth tried to greet her coolly but she failed given that just a minute ago she thought the Redbacks had found Zaf.

'Ruth, you and Zaf make a formidable team. Glad we finally found you,' she added.

'But the Redbacks…' Ruth started.

'You don't need to worry about them,' Adam assured her.

Ruth turned to look at Zaf before moving to his bedside. The two friends embraced tightly, both of them in disbelief that their days on the run were over.

Adam stepped out of the room and moved to the end of the corridor. As he waited for the ringing phone to be picked up, he looked through the window out over the nearby Roman neighborhood.

'We have them,' he said with a smile. 'They're safe.'

* * *

Back in the room, Ros was telling Zaf and Ruth how she and Adam came to be in Rome.

'We were in Catania and on a plane to Portugal but were delayed due to a mechanical issue,' she explained.

'Why were you going to Portugal?' Zaf asked.

Ruth spoke up. 'Oh that was me trying to be clever. I booked tickets in our names from Lisbon to London to throw off the Redbacks. Giovanni's ship sailed there after Sicily so it was possible we were there.'

'Yes, Malcolm determined you were likely on the _Speranza_ , which is why Adam and I were in Sicily to begin with.' She went on to explain about finding Zaf's photo and that Peter and Pippa Granger were wanted for forgery. Ros held off Ruth and Zaf's questions about that issue to finish her story and it was then that Adam came back into the room.

Ros explained that the mechanical issue with plane couldn't be fixed so the passengers had to deplane and that's when Harry rang Adam's mobile.

'Harry updated us on the situation and as we discussed options, the search for the Grangers turned up Zaf's admission to hospital, so Adam and I cancelled our tickets and hired a car to drive here.'

'Do you know why we are wanted for forgery?' Ruth asked.

Adam fielded the question. 'Malcolm's looking into it now and Harry has notified the embassy of the situation, so they are also trying to find out more. How did you get the passports anyway?'

Zaf explained that one of his assets in Catania had helped them acquire the passports through a friend, but that he knew little of the man they'd visited.

A knock on the door stopped the discussion but it was only a nurse coming to check Zaf's vital signs. After he departed, conversation switched to future plans.

* * *

 _Saturday evening_

Zaf remained hospitalized to complete his course of antibiotics. Harry had pulled strings to provide them with protection while in Rome, so early afternoon, Adam and Ruth went back to her hotel room to gather her things and move them to the hotel used by the Embassy for official visitors. Ros stayed behind with Zaf, for which Ruth was grateful as it gave her and Adam a chance to talk. Adam made an effort to stay away from the heavier topic of Ruth's life in Cyprus, instead talking about Malcolm and Jo.

'I'd like to start your debrief tonight, Ruth, just about the Redbacks and anything you can tell me. We are working with other agencies and any information you can provide will be helpful,' Adam said as they sat in the back of the car transporting them back to the hospital from the new hotel.

Ruth nodded. 'Of course. I'll share what I can.'

'The rest of your debrief can wait until we return to London in a few days,' he added.

Ruth didn't respond and Adam looked over to see her staring out the window.

'Are you all right?' he asked quietly.

'I can't go back to London. I told Zaf I would see him safe and he is, with you and Ros here.' She turned to Adam. 'Start my debrief on everything tonight and when we're done in a day or two I'll take my leave.'

The confusion showed on Adam's face. 'But surely you want to go back to London?'

Just then the car pulled up at the hospital and the conversation was put on hold.

That evening, Adam, Ros, and Ruth said their goodnights to Zaf while a security officer from the British Embassy was stationed outside the room as a precaution. The ride back to the hotel was quiet and Ruth pleaded exhaustion in requesting an early night. There had already been a conversation at the hospital between the four of them about the Redbacks so Adam consented to the request. Ros retired to her room to file the summary report on the day's events and to pass along the Redbacks info for distribution.

Adam stayed up for a while, thinking of Harry and a Ruth and how he could get them into the same room once again.

* * *

It was another few days before Zaf was well enough to travel, though he was released from hospital the day after Adam and Ros had turned up. In the meantime, Adam and Ros began Ruth and Zaf's debrief, starting with the information they might know about the Redbacks organization, so that it could be passed on to the various intelligence agencies. Ros requested that she be allowed to conduct Zaf's debrief, and Ruth was pleased that she wouldn't have all that one on one time with Ros. The rooms provided by the embassy were at an upscale hotel, which allowed Zaf and Ruth to finally feel safe and the freedom to speak privately.

Despite it having been more than 24 hours since they were reunited, it still felt odd to Ruth to be seated across from Adam. While a part of her had always hoped that Harry would find her in Polis, she fully never expected to see the rest of the team again. Adam focused on the time from when she and Zaf met and Ruth was thankful to not have to revisit the painful days after Cotterdam just yet.

'I want you to come home to finish your debrief. Once that's complete, you'll be free to go wherever you want,' Adam explained.

Ruth shook her head. 'I'm dead in London. I can't go back.'

'Harry has been working to clear your name for months. Mace didn't make it easy but it's never been an option for Harry to not clear your name,' he responded gently. He tried to put himself in her situation and to understand her frustration.

Adam's use of past tense caught Ruth's attention. 'Has something happened to Mace? You said he didn't make it easy.'

Adam smiled, not the least bit surprised that Ruth caught that detail. 'About a month ago, one of Mace's guys approached me through an old friend from Six. He wasn't directly involved in the events surrounding the Cotterdam fire but he didn't agree with what Mace had done. He quietly started gathering information; names, dates, conversations, etc and then handed it all to me on a flash drive. He continued to gather data for another few weeks and then he quit Six altogether. By then we had enough to go to the Home Secretary and the JIC with the information and Mace was out.'

'What do you mean by out? Just out of his position or out of the country?' Ruth knew she wouldn't feel safe in London or even Britain for that matter if Mace was

'When I spoke to Harry last night, he wanted me to tell you that it's over. Mace and several of his conspirators will be in prison and the Home Secretary is fully aware of what really happened. After you're fully debriefed, you'll be free to go anywhere as Ruth Evershed.'


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N:** My thanks again to R4ven3 for her eagle eyes in catching what spell check doesn't and for assuring me that my hasty ramblings make sense. Thank you also to everyone who is reading the story and sharing their feedback. This isn't the last chapter but the end will be here soon.

* * *

 **Chapter 16**

 _Wednesday late morning_

Harry arranged for a private flight to bring his officers back home. He intended to meet them at the airfield when they arrived but an emergency JIC meeting kept him away. He sent two cars anyway; Jo rode in one car to escort Zaf and Ruth to a private home where they would recuperate from their ordeal and the other car to return Adam and Ros to the Grid.

Jo felt she did an admirable job of containing her excitement at the sight of Zaf and Ruth descending the stairs after Ros, with Adam bringing up the rear. There was no luggage to unload; Ros and Ruth each carried their own bags while Adam had both his and Zaf's bags.

'Welcome back, everyone. Zaf and Ruth, so happy to have you home. I'm taking you to Syon House, where it's been arranged for you to stay and recover. Ros and Adam, Charlie is here to take you back to Thames House. Harry was called to an emergency JIC meeting, otherwise he'd have been here,' Jo explained.

'Reason for the meeting?' Adam asked.

Jo shook her head. 'Nothing that was on our radar. Malcolm will provide you with an update once you're on the road.'

Adam set down Zaf's bag near Jo before climbing in the back seat of the first car with Ros. Moments later, the car accelerated away.

Now that Adam and Ros were gone, Jo allowed her enthusiasm to show. She first embraced Ruth, who happily returned the gesture. The women parted and Ruth moved over to the vehicle to give Zaf and Jo some privacy.

She glimpsed the two embracing through the side window before turning to face forward, leaning back to rest her head. A minute later, Zaf slipped into the back next to Ruth while Jo settled in the front passenger seat.

Their driver, Matthew, was aware of his destination so there was little need for talk during the drive. Zaf slid his hand across the seat to Ruth's hand, which he squeezed then gave her a smile.

* * *

 _Thames House, same afternoon_

Harry returned to the Grid after a few wasted hours of a JIC meeting. He was grateful that his section wasn't the source of the panic and that ultimately it was much ado about nothing, but his greatest annoyance was that he missed the return of his officers. The message from Malcolm that the plane landed safely lifted a weight from his shoulders, which was quickly replaced with unease about what it would be like to see Ruth again.

Adam mentioned on a call recently that Ruth had intended to see Zaf safely back to London but had no plans to stay herself. After explaining Mace's recent ouster and the restoration of her name, Adam had at least convinced her to stay in London for a time, long enough to re-establish herself as Ruth Evershed before she made decisions about her future. While Harry wanted nothing more than to have Ruth back, personally as well as professionally, he knew that she needed to make that decision on her own. Pushing her to stay would only serve to push her away, so he'd arranged for her to stay with Zaf as he recuperated at Syon House.

Harry had also arranged for Diana Jewell from TRNG to be at Syon House starting on Monday to provide Zaf with the opportunity to address his captivity and its impacts. Adam had wholeheartedly agreed to the idea, having worked with Diana so recently on his own issues. During their time together in Rome, Adam hadn't noted anything in Zaf's behaviour that raised a red flag, but he was all too aware that the effects from an experience such as Zaf's may take time to surface. Harry hoped that Ruth would also avail herself of Diana's expertise, but couldn't require she do so as she wasn't a current officer of Five.

Malcolm barely had time to update Harry on his phone call with Adam and Ros when the officers in question stepped through the pods. They dropped their bags at their stations and the four of them retired to Harry's office.

* * *

 _Syon House, same afternoon_

After clearing security at the front gate, the car traveled slowly to the side entrance of the large manor that was to be their home for the foreseeable future. A security officer emerged and exchanged the correct code phrase with their driver before the officer opened the passenger doors and welcomed them to Syon House. Once inside, they were greeted by Marta, a member of the housekeeping staff, who offered tea and other edibles. Tired from their journey, the trio agreed to a cuppa before being given a tour of the home.

A short time later, Marta guided her guests to their bedrooms, with Ruth and Zaf were in adjoining rooms.

'Are you staying here as well?' Ruth asked Jo.

The young officer shook her head. 'No, I'm heading back this evening. I will be back to visit, certainly.'

'Is Matthew taking you back to town?' Zaf asked.

Jo hesitated before answering, unsure how Ruth would take the news. 'No. He's staying here and will be available to you both as needed.' Jo bit her lip and looked down momentarily. 'Harry's coming out this evening. I'm riding back with him,' she explained.

A quiet, 'I see,' was all Ruth said before she retired to her room.

'I was afraid that would happen,' Jo commented. 'She doesn't even need to see him if she doesn't want. I know that he wants to see her, but the purpose of his visit is to see you, Zaf.'

Zaf nodded. 'I understand. I'll talk to her, let her know she's free to skip the meeting if she's not comfortable.'

Jo nodded in return, then tipped her head to the end of the corridor. 'Let's go and see what Marta has planned for dinner tonight. I've been told she's an excellent cook. And by the looks of it, you could use a few good meals,' she teased.

'Yes I could,' he added as they made their way back to the kitchen.

* * *

It was shortly after seven in the evening when a silver coloured sedan pulled up to the side door of Syon House. Security was verified and Harry Pearce was granted entrance. He was greeted by Marta and directed to a small sitting room, just beyond the kitchen. A fire was roaring in the fireplace and Harry could see Zaf and Jo seated next to one another on a settee. His footsteps caused them to turn, then stand as their boss entered the room.

'Zaf, happy to see you again,' he said as he moved forward to shake his hand.

'Very good to be back, Harry,' Zaf responded. 'Thank you for arranging all this.'

'Recovery after an experience like yours takes time, and here you can take that time to do so.'

Harry looked around the room and moved to an arm chair to sit while Zaf and Jo returned to the settee. 'Where's Ruth?' he asked, putting effort into making the question sound casual.

'She's up in her room. We finished dinner about an hour ago and she said she was retiring for the evening,' Jo said.

Harry nodded once in understanding. 'Right.' Looking directly at Zaf, he said, 'I'd like to update you on some things related to your abduction and then share with you how the next few weeks will look.'

'All right,' Zaf said.

'We've shared with other trusted members of the intelligence community the information provided by you and Ruth about the men who were transporting you. Two of them have been arrested in Sicily. We presume they figured out where you likely sailed to and were hoping to find you there. I'm still waiting for further details but my counterpart from AISE has indicated she will share with me information relating to your abduction.'

Harry went on to explain the efforts to track the other two men, whom it appears travelled to Portugal on the chance that Zaf and Ruth disembarked there.

'The information about the base at Famagusta was helpful and plans are being made for observation and possible infiltration. Hopefully the information gathered will help identify the size and scope of this organization. That is part of the reason for you to stay here; security while you recover.'

'Do we have any indication that they know I'm back in London?' Zaf asked.

'Not at this time but it would be a mistake on our part to assume it's not possible for them to know,' Harry responded.

'They told me they had agents in intelligence services and embassies everywhere in Europe. I overheard them talking about information they'd gathered on various targets they were hoping to lift,' Zaf said as a shiver went through his body.

'I wondered about that, since you didn't just turn up at the Embassy in Cyprus and ask for transport home.' Harry paused for a moment, then continued. 'I know that Ros did an initial debrief while you were all still in Rome, but we need to complete a more comprehensive review of your time in captivity. I'd like to start tomorrow, if you feel up to it. I also have a visit planned from a physician cleared by the service to check you over and ensure there aren't any lingering medical concerns.'

'I expected as much,' Zaf said, 'and certainly understand the need for both.'

For the first time since he stepped in the room, Harry turned his full attention to Jo. 'I need to speak with Zaf alone for a few minutes.'

Jo stood. 'Of course. I'll be get my things together and be waiting in the kitchen,' she said before leaving them alone.

Once she was gone, Harry spoke once again. 'Starting on Monday, Diana Jewell will be here to meet with you. Presuming you wish to return to active duty,' Harry paused and Zaf nodded in confirmation, 'then you'll need to be cleared by Diana and her staff.'

'Understood. Does that mean I'm staying here until I'm cleared for active duty or how will that work?' Zaf inquired.

'Diana will do an initial assessment and meet with you regularly for two to three weeks while you are here. At the end of that time, your situation will be re-assessed. It may be that you stay here or in a similar facility for security reasons, but that two or three week period should also give us more answers about the Redbacks and what concerns there are for your safety.'

'And what about Ruth?' Zaf wasn't trying to be cheeky but he was genuinely concerned for her, given her reluctance to even return to the UK.

'I would like to share this information with her directly but suffice it to say that she is once again Ruth Evershed. Following her debrief, she'll have the option of returning to Section D or another position within Five. If she chooses not to stay in London and to relocate elsewhere, I will see to it that she is provided with the financial assistance necessary to do so. I was hoping to speak with her this evening, but I understand if she's not ready. I've also arranged it so Ruth may meet with Diana if she chooses. Because she isn't an officer at the moment, Diana will not be providing me with reports about whether Ruth is fit to return to work.'

'Do you mind if I pass that information along to Ruth?' Zaf asked.

'Please do so.' Harry stood, and Zaf followed suit. 'Please tell her that I'm glad she's safe and that I hope she will meet with me, but that it is her decision whether to do so.'

'Absolutely. I'm not sure what I would have done had I not crossed her path. I'm certain I wouldn't be standing here with you, though.'

Harry nodded in grim agreement before they both walked out of the room and down the hall to the kitchen. Jo was there, reading a book while she waited.

'Are you ready to go?' she asked as the men walked in the room.

At Harry's nod, she sent a text message to Harry's driver to bring the car around. She stood from her chair and picked up the jacket that had been hanging from the back. She closed the book and slid it into her bag, which she then slung over her shoulder.

'Zaf, I'm planning to come back out sometime over the weekend to visit. My mobile number is on the counter if you need anything.'

The security officer at the door stuck his head in the room to let them know the car was ready. Harry and Zaf shook hands and Jo gave Zaf a quick hug.

'Tell Ruth I said good bye and that I'll see her soon,' she said as she and Harry left the house.

After settling in the back seat, Jo pulled out some earphones and an iPod to listen to music. She knew Harry wouldn't be in the mood to chat and this was a better option than uncomfortable silence between them for the next hour.

Harry was thankful for Jo's thoughtfulness and settled in for the drive. As the car moved passed the house, Harry took one last look and was pleased to see Ruth watching his car leave from a first floor window.

* * *

 **A/N:** Syon House is real; it's the London-area home of the Duke of Northumberland and his family. I hope he doesn't mind my borrowing it for this story.


End file.
